


d i s p e r s i o n

by HomuraBakura



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Canon Rewrite, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-16
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-22 05:37:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 49
Words: 111,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13757406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HomuraBakura/pseuds/HomuraBakura
Summary: For as long as she can remember, Yuzu has worn a pendulum around her neck.  For just as long, Yuya has had a bracelet that no one can tell him the origin of.Their lives upend when the truths about their lives shatter and they are dragged apart in a struggle to return something that was lost, something that neither of them remember even existed.





	1. PART I: Fractured

 

You: In this unsatisfying everyday,

Back against the wall,

Do you _still_ see a chance?

_You: With your fighting stance,_

_Trapped in the beat of your heart_

_We’ll go down together_

_Or not at all._

 

**But don’t worry, love,**

**Didn’t I tell you that I’d never leave you?**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyooooooooooooooo
> 
> So here we are friendoes....this is the idea that got the most votes on my poll, so this is my newest multichap :) It's just...a role reversal, basically, lol. The boys have the bracelets and Yuzu's got the pendulum, but nothing else, e.g., families and such (Yuzu is still Shuzo's daughter, Yuya is still Yoko and Yusho's son, Ruri is still Shun's sister, etc.) has changed. 
> 
> All I've done was swap the jewelry and see how that changes the story overall, how the character will react differently in this new situation~ hope it turns out cool!
> 
> I hate that I feel like I have to make this last note, and I don't really expect any of my regular readers to make comments like these, but if you wanna harp on the original canon in the comments on this work....pls don't. This is a For Fun What If au, not a Fix It Because I Hated Canon Fic, and I personally think canon was absolutely fine as it was, so I'd rather not hear complaints about the canon in reference to my work, I don't find it complimentary ;w;
> 
> Again I really doubt I'll hear that from anyone, but I felt the need to make the note just in case ;w; anyway, thank you for picking up this fic and I hope you enjoy it!


	2. Y U Z U

**You haven’t**

**won or lost.**

**_yet._ **

**give it time.**

* * *

 

He’s got his goggles over his eyes again, and he doesn’t even lift his head when she turns back to him.  He’s always been shorter than her, but in the dirt with his knees up to his face he looks even smaller than his seven years.

“They’re gone, Yuya,” she says.  “I made them go away. It’s okay.”

The dust from the bullies’ flight still settles in the air, and she can still hear their ringing _next time_ echoing in her head.  There won’t be a next time.  She’ll make sure if it.

She crouches down in front of him, her dress dragging a bit in the dirt.  Her hair slips from its little flower clip as she reaches forward to hold his cheeks in both her tiny hands.

“Are you crying?” she asks.

For a moment, Yuya’s teeth dig into his bottom lip, his cheeks squished under her hands.  Then he wriggles free of her grip and pulls the goggles back. His eyes are red, but there aren’t any tears inside the goggles.  He smiles.

“Thanks, Yuzu,” he says, with a soft laugh.  “I’m okay, I promise!”

There’s a bruise forming on his cheek right under his left eye.  They actually hit him. Or pushed him into the swings, she’s not sure which.  She feels a very solid chunk of rock growing in the place right over her heart.

Yuya hops to his feet, spinning around once on his heels before starting to brush off his shorts from the playground dust.  

“Are you okay?” Yuzu asks.

“Mm-hm!  I’m really good, Yuzu!  See?”

He pokes his tiny fingers into his cheeks as he makes a big, toothy smile.  The playground is empty. There is no one to impress. He smiles anyway.

“Are you gonna go home?  Are you gonna tell your mom what happened?”

“I don’t want mama to worry,” Yuya says.  He puts his hands behind his head and smiles big again.  This time she sees the cracks. “It wasn’t that bad anyway!  They were just playing really rough.”

This time she feels the snake in her stomach, twisting around and coiling up tight around her heart.

“Stop it,” she says.

Yuya hesitates in the middle of swinging his arms back and forth, and his smile only slips a little.

“Stop what?” he says.

His sentence cuts off abruptly when she flings forward and grabs him around the waist, so violently that both of them collapse to the ground.  She presses her face hard against his chest, feeling his heart bump against her forehead. Her arms tighten around his waist and they can both feel her pendulum digging into their skin between them.

“Yuzu?” he says.

“Don’t smile,” Yuzu says.  “You don’t have to smile. Don’t smile for them.”

Yuya just lays there for a moment.  After a moment, he awkwardly pats her head a few times.

“It’s okay, Yuzu.  I’m really okay.”

“No, don’t do that.  You don’t have to be okay.  Don’t smile for people like them.  You don’t have to be the smiling one for people like that.”

Yuya’s hand rests on Yuzu’s head without moving.  For a moment, neither of them speak, as the sun creeps ever onwards down towards the horizon, painting the playground in orange and yellow.

“Are you mad?” Yuya whispers.

Yuzu’s not sure what she is.  She tries to focus on Yuya’s heartbeat so she doesn’t have to think about how fast her own is beating.

“No,” she says.  “It’s okay. You can smile if you want to, Yuya.  Just don’t smile if you don’t want to. I’ll protect you no matter what.”

Yuya lays there with his hand on her head and doesn’t answer.


	3. R U R I / R I N

I’m taking it 

       full throttle forward

no turning back now love

 

**I’ll meet you on the other side**

* * *

“Smiles?”

“Uh-huh!  That’s what Sakaki-sensei was talking about!”

Sayaka is surprisingly chipper; it’s the most excitable Ruri has ever seen her.  Her eyes sparkle and her entire body lights up, spinning around on her heels.

“Sakaki-sensei says that if you duel with a smile, you can never lose,” Sayaka says.  “Or at least, your heart never loses! And everyone has fun in the meantime.”

Ruri thinks about it, swinging half heartedly back and forth on the swing by rocking her feet back and forth.  Sayaka stands on the swing next to her, swinging back and forth slowly. The setting sun catches her glasses and makes her seem to glow.  Ruri smiles.

“Well, you seem to have the smiling part down,” she teases, and is rewarded by Sayaka’s bright red cheeks and stuttering.  She nearly slips from the swing, but she catches herself and continues to rock back and forth.

“Well, um, what do you think, Ruri-chan?” Sayaka asks, still blushing as red as the setting sky.  “About dueling with smiles, I mean.”

“I...hm.  I’m not really sure?”

Ruri looks up at the park.  It’s empty at this time of day, save for one distant, crying child demanding of his mother that they stay a little longer.  This is a quiet time, she thinks. A time where time doesn’t really exist, right between night and day. It feels as though the entire world is holding its breath.

“I think it’s a nice thought,” she says.  “It’s good when everyone is having fun.”

“Do you have fun when you duel, Ruri-chan?”

This question takes Ruri aback.  She stops swinging. Her lips part, and a breeze tickles her hair.

“I...I guess I hadn’t thought about it.

Why does she duel, anyway?  Because her big brother does.  He was going to Spade School, so she wanted to go too.  Dueling with her brother was sometimes the only time she got to see him.  He was always hanging out with his friends.

_ “Why do you have to go to the same school as me?  Can’t you do something yourself for a change?” _

_ “I’m not going because of you, niisan!!  God, why do you think everything revolves around you?” _

But hadn’t she gone because he went, too?

“Duels with smiles,” she says softly, as though testing it out.  “A duel where everyone has fun.”

_ I want to have duels where everyone has fun together! _

Was that something she had heard someone say before?  It felt somehow nostalgic.

She stood up with a snap, and hopped onto the swing so that she was standing on like Sayaka.  She smiled at the girl’s surprised face.

“I guess I don’t know why I duel,” she says.  “But I think I’ll give your duels with smiles a try, Sayaka-chan.  Until I figure out what I want from dueling!”

Ruri is standing in the Spade School dueling field, and her brother is waving her over.

“Ruri, come over here, I’ve got someone I want you to meet.”

“Oh, really?  You want your friends to know I exist?” she says, but she’s teasing, and he rolls her eyes.

The boy rubs the back of his neck a little nervously as she jogs over, taking off her Duel Disk.  Shun gestures towards the boy with one hand.

“Ruri, this is Yuto.  Yuto, this is my sister, Ruri.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Yuto says, with a warm, kind smile.  Ruri smiles as she bows politely. 

“Do you go to Spade, too?”

“I’m in Shun’s class, yeah,” Yuto says.  “Your duel was great.”

“Oh, thank you!  I’ve been practicing,” Ruri says with a laugh.  “What about you? Why do you duel?”

“Me?” Yuto says, as though surprised by the question.  He scratches his neck briefly, looking thoughtful. The light catches off of the strange, beautiful bracelet he has on his wrist.  “I guess....I want to have duels where everyone has fun.”

Ruri feels that strange, twisting nostalgic feeling in her stomach, and wonders, for a moment, where she’s heard that before.

* * *

“Dummy!  You should know better than to work without gloves!  Now stop crying and let me see!”

Yugo sniffles loudly, but he holds his hand out for her to inspect.  Rin grabs his wrist and stares at his fingers with a scowl. All things considered, it’s not too bad.  He should count himself lucky that this little burn on his fingertips and knuckles is all he got for shoving his bare hands into the inner workings of the bike.

“You’ll be fine, you big baby,” she says, sighing.  “Hold still, okay?”

Yugo only nods, and waits patiently while Rin carefully bandages up his burned fingers.

“No more of that without gloves okay?  In fact, until they heal, no motorcycles for you.”

“Aww, but Riiiin!”

“Don’t you Riiiin me,” Rin says, putting her hands on her hips.  “You did this to yourself! Now wait patiently for your hands to heal.”

Yugo pouts very loudly at her, folding his arms.  The effect is lost when he winces at his hands going under his armpits, and he has to unfold his arms.  Rin sighs, letting her arms fall to his sides.

“You have to be more careful,” she says.  “I don’t know what I’d do if I—”

A siren wails in the distance.

Immediately, both of them freeze.  In the tiny garage, the world suddenly seems to compress, until there is nothing but them and the siren in the distance.  Is it getting closer? Is she just being paranoid? Did someone notice the parts they pilfered from the good storehouse yesterday?  They were trash pieces in the dumpster but the dumpsters were locked so they weren’t supposed to have them. Oh god. They’re going to be arrested.  Yugo won’t last a day in prison. He’s too good.

As though listening to her thoughts, she feels his arms wrap around her shoulders, feels the cold of his ever present bracelet against the back of her neck.

“Don’t worry, Rin,” he says.  “I’ll protect you!”

Rin feels a thick, choking laugh, but she doesn’t release it. 

“Thanks, Yugo,” she whispers, wrapping her arms around him back.  She knows better— it’s her job to be the one that knows better. He can’t protect her, she can’t protect him.  This world is determined to ruin them.

She only hopes that they can make it out before it does.

But it makes Yugo feel better to think he’s protecting her.  So she smiles, and hugs him tighter, nestling her head into his neck.  It’s nice, for a moment, to pretend that they are safe like this.

“Thanks,” she whispers again.  “I’ll protect you too.”


	4. S E L E N A

**swaying mind**

**swaying heart**

where do I end

and where do you start

 

**confused and lost in the ultimate end**

 

let’s make something beautiful swaying back and forth between us

instead of making us

not exist

* * *

She hears the soft sound of glove hands clapping behind her, and immediately she stands straight up, perking towards the sound, ponytail whipping as she whirls.

A smile explodes over her face and all through her heart with a huge shudder of delight at the sight of the man standing in the doorway.  There is the faintest of smiles on his lips— he’s smiling! She hasn’t seen him smiling in ages!

She leaves her finished opponent crumpled on the ground behind her and runs up the stairs two at a time to reach him.  She stops, quickly, resisting to go for the hug and instead standing properly and straight backed, arms clasped behind her, waiting for him to speak first.

“You’re doing excellent work here, Selena,” Leo says.  “I’m proud of you.”

“Thank you, sir,” she says, buzzing with excitement.  “I’m happy to hear that; I’ve been working hard.”

“I know you have.”

A rare moment of affection: he pats her head lightly, and she feels a surge of satisfaction.  She’s been working so hard for him to notice her again.

“Sir, is it presumptuous of me to ask if there’s a reason for your visit?” she asks.

“Not at all.  Come along, I have something to show you.”

Selena hops to follow, careful not to overtake him in her excitement.  She’s elated to leave her training hall behind and finally do something worthwhile.

The reactor room is cold and dark as usual when they enter inside, and Leo does not turn on the lights.  Selena follows him up to the glowing screens, up the stairs to the control seat. Leo doesn’t sit down, he just turns to face the screens.

Selena allows herself the briefest moment of nostalgia.  This was the place he took her the day he found her, the day he took her home.

_You are special, Selena.  You aren’t like the other students here.  You have a destiny that I’m trusting you to complete._

_You are a piece of the daughter that I lost._

Leo turns on the holographic screens, and readouts started to play.  Selena recognizes some of the footage. They’re replays of some of Leo’s memory banks, of her.  Of the girl she once was, the one who tried to save the world. Under his orders she’s rewatched most of the tapes over and over, every day, trying to see if any memories of her past life resurrect themselves.  She’s had little success, but Leo assured her that she was missing large parts of herself, and not to push it. She only needed to worry about training to be strong again, strong enough to carry out her destiny.

Leo swipes the screens away and brings up a new readout. It’s a photograph.  It’s from a bit of a distance, but she hones in immediately on what she’s supposed to be seeing.

“Is that him, sir?” she asks.

He’s in the middle of the photo, sitting at a cafe table across from a girl with dark hair, whose back is to the camera.  He’s about her age, fair skinned, eyes closed in the middle of a laugh. His dark violet bangs swoop over one eye, black hair in the back spiky and sweeping.

“That’s him,” Leo agrees, nodding.  “That’s one of the young men who have the power to make you whole again.”

He puts his hand on her shoulder, and she stands up straighter.

“My field operative sent this yesterday.  We’ll begin the invasion tomorrow, and you’ll meet the operative to locate him during the confusion.”

“Yes, sir!”

She’s finally going to do it.  Her destiny is just within reach.

“It sounds as though another has been located in the Synchro dimension, so do not dally in XYZ.”

“I won’t, sir.”

Leo turns to her, then, and she looks up at him. She sees him rarely between his busy schedule and her training.  She opens her mouth, but she’s not sure what to say.

“When this mission is complete, sir,” she starts.  “Uh...”

Leo waits, his face expressionless.

“Sir, will we be a family again, then?  Will I remember who I was?”

Leo doesn’t quite smile, but she thinks she sees his eyes soften.  He squeezes her shoulder lightly.

“Don’t worry,” he says.  “Complete your mission, and everything will be fine.”

She brightens, and stands straight up, saluting.

“I won’t let you down,” she says, and then she hesitates, and adds, “...father.”

His face stiffens, and she feels the air drop two degrees.  

“Sir,” she says quickly.  “I won’t let you down, sir.”

His hand slips from her shoulder, but the air has warmed again.  She takes a half step back. Her heart screams in her chest. She made a mistake.  She can’t make that mistake again.

She _must_ complete her mission.

“Report to the field operatives’ center,” he says, looking away from her, as though her mistake didn’t happen. “They’ll brief you on your entry.  You leave tomorrow at noon.”

She salutes.  He dismisses the screens, and thus dismisses her.  She hurries down the stairs as quickly as her legs will let her.

She’ll do it.  She’ll finish her mission, she’ll collect the boys with the power to make her, and the world, right again.  

She will become the person she was always supposed to be, and he’ll smile at her for real.  She’ll reclaim herself, and the life she was meant to have.

She will become Akaba Ray.

 

**E N D  P A R T  I**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge shoutout to [TheDarkOne121](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkOne121/pseuds/TheDarkOne121), who was so kind as to draw some ideas for what the boys' bracelets might look like in this au! You can see it [here!](https://wanli8970.deviantart.com/art/Four-Dimension-Bracelets-Role-Reversal-736693781?ga_submit_new=10%3A1521734912), please support them! Thank you so much TheDarkOne121!!!! ;w;


	5. PART II: Standard

**This is the real thing**

**darling**

**did you even think before giving**

**into**

**your impulsive heartbeat?**

 

I reject your revolution

I’m taking it down now love

this is where it ends

 

your belief versus mine

      the match of the century

 

the last match of existence


	6. Y U Z U / Y U Y A

break it down

      break it _down_

 

pleasebreakitdownicantbreathelikethispleasepleaseplease

 

**breathe**

**the future remains infinite**

**it will be**

**all right**

* * *

“You want me to what?”

Yuya looks pale, and there are still faint red lines around his eyes from where his goggles were suctioned to his face a minute ago.  Yuzu can see the way his hands twitch, as though he is desperate to reach up and drag them down over his eyes again.

“You needn’t worry, it’s simply an exhibition duel— won’t even count towards your official rankings in the slightest!  But it should give you a decent amount of exposure as well.”

Yuzu folds her hands in her lap and levels her gaze at the man in the chair across from them.  He’s a tall, skinny person, with a long face and a nose to match. His tiny, bushy mustache twitches when he smiles, which seems to be always, and she’s never seen a more garish suit in her life.  Nico Smiley, the manager of current Duel Champion Strong Ishijima, doesn’t really look like what she expected from a professional. But then, dueling attracts all kinds.

“I...I don’t know,” Yuya fumbles.  “Me against Strong? That’s...I’m just a student.”

“But you’re also the son of Sakaki Yushou, the former champion!  Think of it as your wish of three years ago getting granted; the crowd will love it.”

Yuya’s eyes briefly blank out and Yuzu knows what he’s seeing.  A screaming, booing crowd, a shouting man in the duel field demanding to know where his opponent is, her best friend shooting past her and throwing himself at the railings screaming and crying while his mother tries to hold him back: _“I’ll duel you!  My dad isn’t a coward!  I’ll duel you until he gets here!  I’ll duel you!”_

Yuya looks like he’s ready to throw up, but before Yuzu’s twitchy anger can surface, her father speaks.

“You want to turn Yuya into a spectacle,” he says, folding his arms.  “Excuse me if I’m not impressed by that.”

“If you participate in this _completely low stakes_ duel, LDS Corporation would be happy to compensate your school with the newest Arc System,”

 _That_ gets her father’s attention, and she sees his mouth drop open and his mind start turning calculation gears.  She shoots to her feet. The motion catches every eye in the room, and for a second, she has everyone’s attention.  She folds her arms and stares down at Nico Smiley, as much as she can— even while he’s sitting and she’s standing, he’s nearly as tall as she is.

“Why don’t you stop and let Yuya give you an answer?” Yuzu says.  “Or better, just leave your card. We’ll discuss it and get back to you.”

“The duel _is_ tomorrow...”

Yuzu glares at him, and that seems to stop him.  He hesitates, smile slipping only a little. Then, after another beat, he reaches into his breast pocket and withdraws a small card, leaving it on the table.

“The sooner you could respond, the better,” he says.  “We’re already advertising it as a comeback match.”

“Oh, how presumptuous of you,” Yuzu says dryly, not moving to take the card.

She waits, staring at him with her arms folded, until he awkwardly stands up, bobs a slight bow, and legs it from the room.

Only then does Yuzu sigh and let her arms droop to her sides.

“Well, Yuya?” she says, turning.  “What do you want to do?”

Yuya isn’t there.

“He went out the back,” Gongenzaka offers when Yuzu looks up.

Yuzu nods.  She has a feeling she knows where he’ll be.

* * *

 _This really is too big to be a necklace_ , he thinks, grumbling as he grabs at the huge pendant smacking against his chest.  It’s not even really a pendant: it’s supposed to be a bracelet, but wearing it over his wristbands turned out to be a pain.  

 _I guess I could just take it off_ , he thinks as he swings his legs over the railing and perches himself on top of it to look over the water below.  For some reason, the idea makes him feel uncomfortable. He takes the loop off of his neck, slips off one of his wristbands, and puts the bracelet back on.  It feels better like that.

Maiami is beautiful at noon.  The sun gleams from a brilliant blue sky, and the light hits just perfect against the duel dome at the other end of the lake.  It glitters like a diamond and sends its fractals down into the water, setting the lake ablaze like molten platinum, brilliant even through his darkened goggles.  Out here, Yuya feels like he can breathe. He inhales the distant scent of the water far below, and breathes it out again.

 _Me against the champion?_ he thinks, twisting the bracelet back and forth on his wrist.   _Are they crazy...?  They probably just want to see me lose._

Further punishment, he thinks with a pit in his stomach.  Punishment for the man who vanished, his father who left before his championship duel, thrust onto his shoulders.  He tries not to feel the brief resentment that curls into his stomach, but sadness floods in to fill the gaps in its place.

“Yuya?”

He glances over his shoulder.  Yuzu hovers awkwardly a few feet away, holding her arm to her side with one hand.  She chews on her lip.

“You okay?”

Yuya is glad for his goggles, so that she can’t see his tears.  He flashes her a big smile.

“Yeah, just thinking things over.  This could be really big, you know?  I mean, it doesn’t count towards my official scores, but man, that’d be a huge crowd, don’t you think?  And— ”

“Yuya, you don’t have to force it,” Yuzu said.  “You’re upset, I can tell. You don’t have to smile for me.”

Yuya forces the smile to stay anyway.  If he doesn’t smile, Yuzu and the others worry even more.  

Yuzu sighs.  It’s impossible to fool her, but she’ll play along.  She wanders up to the railing and leans her elbows against it, gazing at the duel dome.

“I could do it,” she says.

Yuya blinks.

“Huh?”

“I mean...I know I’m not your dad’s kid, but I’m a You Show student, the school that he helped found.  So the idea should be the same, right, if I duel Strong with the same You Show techniques?”

She’s offering to do it.  To take over the duel, put herself out there in front of all those people and probably lose— her opponent would be the champion after all!  Is she really offering to...to take this off his shoulders?

“I can’t ask you to do that,” he says.

“You don’t want to do it.  I can tell. And I think it’s dumb and awful of them to put you out there when we know what Strong and the audience wants from you.”

This comes out with an edge of anger that Yuzu normally doesn’t show around him, and Yuya briefly looks down at his knees.  Then his hands curl into the railing.

“Yuzu, thank you,” he says.  “But...”

He swallows.  For a moment, it’s as though he can see the whole of his past written in the water below him.  His father’s dueling, that awed and inspired him to become a duelist himself. The day he disappeared, the booing, screaming crowd, the ones who laughed at him while he shouted to be allowed to duel.  The kids who threw things and words at him, laughing behind his back because he was the son of the coward champion. Gongenzaka blocking a rock thrown at him, Yuzu leaping in front of him and screaming until the bullies fled.  Yuzu wants to get in front of him again, to put herself between him and the bullies. For a moment, he can’t feel anything other than gratitude.

Then he reaches up and pulls his goggles away.

“Thank you,” he says again.  “But I can’t be protected forever.  I’ve...I’ve got to be able to catch up to you guys.”

He smiles at Yuzu’s startled expression.

“I’m going to do it,” he says, and his heart leaps with the sudden, freeing excitement of it.  “I’m going to duel Strong Ishijima.”

Yuzu’s eyes briefly widen.  And then she smiles, and it is the softest smile he’s ever seen from her.  She raises her fist up towards him, and he meets it with his own with a light tap.

“Knock them dead, then,” she says.  “I’ll be behind you the whole way.”

* * *

The crowd roars and ripples and Yuzu feels her heart stopping up and her limbs freezing together as she realizes that _Yuya is going to lose._

Below her, through the solid vision trees, she can see him stumble.  His back is to her and she can still see the tremble, can imagine the pale look on his face even without looking up at the screen overhead that broadcasts his face to the whole stadium.

“Your field is empty!” Strong Ishijima shouts at him with a vicious smile.  “Will you give up yet, Sakaki Yuya?”

Someone in the crowd boos.  It’s only one person, but she knows he hears it.  Sees his shoulders flinch as though he’s been struck.

“I thought we were gonna see a show!” someone shouts, and then the boos get a little louder, a little more insistent from one end of the crowd.

“This is boring!” someone else shouts.

Yuya looks once again like he is going to throw up.  Ishijima ends his turn, and she sees the way Yuya’s eyes flick up and down, to his cards, to his hand, his empty field, to his opponent’s massive troll looming over him with a club big enough to squash him in one blow.  He keeps looking at his cards, mouth hanging open slightly, as though they will magically transform in his hands into something he can use.

“Draw a card already!”

“Yea, finish the duel!”

 _Stop it_ , Yuzu thinks, dull, distant, even to herself.  Her vision is narrowing, and all she can see is Yuya, the rest of the world black around her.

“Are you a coward too??”

“Did you give up?”

_Stop it._

“Booooo!”

“Come on, don’t just stand there!”

Yuya is on the verge of tears.  His knees buckle. He looks as though he is going to collapse.

_STOP IT!_

For the briefest moment, Yuzu’s vision goes black.  A heat explodes over her thigh, as though her deck has caught fire.  She feels the pendulum around her neck swinging wildly, smacking her in the chest over and over.  She can’t breathe, there is a vice around her throat.

_Yuya Yuya Yuya Yuya Yuya—_

Her hands move on her own, or do they?  Is she imagining that she is moving as though she is drawing her next card?  She has nothing in her hands, and yet she moves as though she does.

_“I set the Pendulum Scale with Scale 1 Stargazer Magician and Scale 8 Timegazer Magician!”_

Did she speak out loud, or is that in her head?  What is she saying? What is she _doing_?

Her vision clears, and all at once, she realizes that the stadium is suddenly, blissfully silent.

“Yuzu?  Yuzu!!”

Yuzu blinks.  Her father is holding onto her, propping her up.  Did she pass out? His face breaks with a cold relief as she focuses on him.

“Yuzu, are you okay?  What happened? Are you feeling faint??  Do I need to get a doctor?”

“Dad, I’m fine,” Yuzu says, and as soon as she says it, she is.  She feels clear-headed, as though nothing has happened. “What happened to the duel?”

Somewhere in the silence, a cheer goes up.  And then another one, and another, like irregular fireworks until the whole stadium is roaring.  Panic immediately seizes her. Is it over? Did the duel end? Are they cheering for Ishijima? What happened to Yuya??

Yuzu looks up at the screen, the only part she can see from down here.

 _WINNER_ , the screen reads, over an image of what appears to be a very shell-shocked Yuya.  For a moment, all she can do is stare, as Yuya also appears to be doing.

 _Oh_ , she thinks.   _Oh!_

He won.  The cheers are for him.

Yuya won.


	7. Y U Z U

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> augh sorry about the lack of update on Friday! I miscalculated my writing schedule and I didn't have anything prepared last week >< Fingers crossed that won't happen again, but thank you for your patience!! Thanks to everyone reading the story so far, I appreciate y'all <3

Knock back

      all hesitations

step forward

 

              do it for me, won’t you?

* * *

 

“Wah!!  Where did they all come from?”

Yuya peeks around the door with wide eyes, his mouth hanging open.  Yuzu shrugs with a faint smile, looking out past him. The hallway of You Show Duel Academy is crowded with children and their parents, milling about and laughing and poking at each other.  Her father is doing his best to handle all of the incoming applications on his own, chattering at a mile a minute to the parents who keep asking questions one on top of the other.

“They were all dazzled by you,” Yuzu says with a smile.  “They want to come to the school you’re at.”

Yuya blushes a red as deep as his hair when she nudges him with her elbow.

“I don’t even....I mean, it wasn’t even that special,” he says.

“Nonsense!” comes the great booming voice of Gongenzaka, making the whole door frame shake as he approaches from behind them.  “You were remarkable out there, Yuya! The man Gongenzaka has to congratulate you!”

He scoops up Yuya in a huge, rib crushing hug, and Yuzu laughs while Yuya makes an exaggerated gasping sound.  He laughs when Gongenzaka finally releases him, hitting him lightly on the shoulder. Gongenzaka looks as though he might cry a single tear of manly pride.  Yuzu smiles too— it feels as though a weight’s come off her chest since Yuya won. Yuya’s been smiling, laughing, joking so much more easily, and there isn’t a hint of self-deprecation.  He _looks_ like all the color has suddenly flooded into him all at once.

She hears another rush of babbled questions and shouting children, and winces in sympathy for her frazzled father.

“I should go out and help dad with the applications,” she says.

“Nonsense!  You and Yuya are going to have an exhibition duel, are you not?” Gongenzaka booms.  He claps Yuzu on the shoulder hard enough to make her whole body shudder. “Let the man Gongenzaka take care of it!  You and Yuya prepare for your duel!”

“Thanks, Gongenzaka!” Yuya says with an airy laugh. He looks as though he might start flying, and Yuzu can’t help but smile.  “Yuzu, let’s go!”

She nods.  But as Yuya bursts into their tiny duel arena, she trails behind.  Her deck feels like a stone in her pocket, dragging her speed down.

 _He’s so happy_.

Yuya does a little bounce and spin, bowing to the kids on the other side of the window, and she sees them laugh.  Her heart quickens a bit. It’s been so long since she’s seen Yuya so at ease, so light and cheerful.

She only vaguely hears her father fumbling to introduce them.  He’s so flustered; they’ve never had even half this amount of interest in their little school before.  She glances up towards the control room, and sees Ayu poke her head up. She waves ecstatically, and Yuzu gives her a little smile and wave back before she disappears from view again.

“Yuzu!” Yuya says, and Yuzu turns to face him.

He sweeps her a deep bow, smiling so widely that it infects Yuzu with her own smile.

“Let’s have a great duel!” he says.

She’s made a decision.  She won’t use them.

“Let’s,” she agrees, strapping on her duel disk.

The kids turn on the Action Field, and for the first time, the hologram expands smoothly without the hint of a glitch.  Oh, she breathes, as she looks up a wide blue sky where before there had been a ceiling, an actual breeze rustling her pigtails and making the grass around her feet tickle her ankles.  So _this_ is what a real ARC System felt like.  It was like she was actually here!

“Ladies first!” Yuya says, and Yuzu rolls her eyes at him.  Well, today it was Yuya’s show, after all. She would make sure she was an adequate opponent for him.

“You’ll regret giving me the advantage,” she says in her best performer’s voice, and she hears the kids whispering excitedly behind the glass window.  

Her hand makes her heart twitch with nerves.  There they are. The cards that weren’t there the day before yesterday.

They are strange, unlike anything she’s seen before.  The top halves of the cards are colored like a monster card, but the bottoms like a spell card.  They have two different effect boxes, and arrows with numbers on either side. She watched the replay of Yuya’s duel, and she saw him use cards just like these.

These are Pendulum cards, and she does not know why she has them,

She licks her lips and tucks the Pendulum cards at the end of her hand, selecting another card in its place.

“I summon Aria, the Melodious Diva!” Yuzu calls out.  “Bless the field with your song!”

The air thrums with music and her monster swooshes into view, humming melodically.  This new ARC System is incredible, Yuzu thinks. She can see the shimmer of Aria’s dress, can pick out the exact kind of fabric it’s made of.  Her musical wing looks solid and real, and the beautiful pink-skinned girl actually looks over her shoulder and smiles at Yuzu as she hums. Yuzu smiles back.

“Aria can’t attack this turn, but that means that her effect activates!  Since you didn’t take any battle damage from her this turn, you take eight hundred points of damage!”

Aria clasps her hands together and opens her mouth.  A low, alto tone rings out from her throat in a visible whirlwind, stirring Yuya’s hair and making him take a step back.  His hair is ruffled, but he looks shining and excited. Yuzu can’t help but smile.

“My turn!” Yuya cries.  “I’m summoning my pal, Performapal Hip Hippo!”

Yuya’s hippo does a little dance, tipping its top hat when it appears.  It’s so full of personality, Yuzu thinks with a little giggle. Just like Yuya.  Yuya swoops up on top of Hip Hippo like a horse, and the hippo dances back and forth from its fore to its hind legs a few times.  They both look so happy, Yuzu thinks.

“And now, for the main event that you’ve all been waiting for!” Yuya cries out, bowing from the top of his hippo towards the crowd.  “I set the Pendulum Scale!”

Yuzu feels it, then— the thrumming, heart-pulsing feeling that thickens the air and makes it a little harder to breathe.  Her pendulum seems to get white hot against her chest, but it does not burn.

The air turns a shining, sparkling blue, as though the dust has suddenly crystallized.  Two pillars of light burst from the earth on either side of Yuya, and his Performapal monsters rise up into the air within it.  Numbers glowed beneath them. Over Yuya’s head, a little dot of light swirls back and forth, tracing an arc through the sky.

“Swing, pendulum of souls!  Draw an arc of light across the ether!  Come now, my monsters!”

Nothing happens, except that Yuya’s Duel Disk buzzes out an error.  Yuya blinks. He puts the cards on his Duel Disk again. Another error buzz.

 _Uh oh_.

Yuya’s happy shine fades as he keeps putting the cards on his Disk over and over again, and it keeps buzzing.  Yuzu can hear more whispering on the other side of the window, now, beyond the hologram, but it’s not excited whispers now.  Her heart quickens. Oh no.

Yuya looks pale.  His smile is gone.  She sees his eyes flicker towards where the crowd will be, and sees his fists clench up.

“Uh— Yuzu!  Take your turn!” he says, tapping his hippo into a canter across the field.

“What?” Yuzu says.

What is his plan?  Well...she’ll trust him.  She’ll just keep dueling the way she ought to.

Her Pendulum cards burn against her fingers when she draws, and she swallows: another one.  She’s drawn another one. Where did they come from?? She promised she wouldn’t use them, not during Yuya’s performance!

“Since I have a Melodious monster on my field, I can special summon Sonata the Melodious Diva!”

Sonata appears in a rush of musical twittering, smiling brightly at Aria.

“I tribute Sonata and Aria to normal summon Mozarta, the Melodious Maestra!”

Sonata and Aria clasp hands together, turning towards each other and putting their foreheads together, and then turning to light.  From light, Mozarta appears, striking a pose with her arms out one either side of her, baton at the ready. Yuzu feels the wind of her arrival like a gust against her, ruffling her skirt.

“Mozarta can special summon another level 4 or lower Melodious monster from my hand!  I’m summoning a second Aria!”

Her monster appeared with a happy flurry of notes, and she and Mozarta briefly bowed to each other.

“All right!  Aria, attack Hip Hippo!”

Yuya bolts across the field, and she knows he’s looking for an Action Card.

For a moment, she hesitates.  If she holds back Aria and Mozarta’s attack for a moment longer...Yuya can find an Action Card.  Maybe next turn his Pendulum Summon will work, and it will be a powerful turnaround. The crowd will go wild for it.  Yuya will smile again.

_Why should he need the crowd?  Why should he need them? He’s better than they are.  They don’t deserve him._

She’s not sure what causes the rush of irritable anger in her fingers, but she spreads them out in direction for Aria to attack.

Yuya barely misses his Action Card, and tumbles to the ground when Hip Hippo shatters beneath him.  He rolls and comes up on his knees, Duel Disk up and ready. He has a very tentative smile on his face, looking up at his pillars of light, like he thinks that somehow something is going to change now.  The Pendulum Summon is suddenly going to work.

 _Maybe it is?_ Yuzu thinks.

Yuya smiles at her.  He wants her to duel the way she always does.  So she nods, and she raises her hand up.

“Mozarta!  Attack!”

* * *

He has his goggles on again, but he has his back to her, so that she doesn’t see it.  She still knows.

“Yuya, I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry.  I messed up.”

The hallway is empty, now.  It rings with the angry, spitting echoes of _cheater_ and _fake_.  Yuzu’s hands tremble.

_I should have used the cards._

_“You’re the only one who has them?  How is that fair?”_

She can still see the way Yuya flinched as though he had been struck.

_If I had used them, I could have played it off as him teaching me how.  That it was something our school developed. Not something that he made up._

_This is my fault_.

“I shouldn’t have...been so cocky,” Yuya mumbles.  “I’m sorry, Yuzu. Sensei. I lost all of our applicants.”

“It’s not your fault!” Yuzu cries.  “You’re not a cheater! You’re not a fraud!”

_I have them too!  I have the cards too!  You didn’t make them up!_

“That’s— that’s right!  Yuya-oniisan isn’t a cheater!”

The hallway rings with the conviction in the tiny voice, and as one, all of them look up.

A tiny boy still remains in the hallway, his small fists trembling and his bottom lip sticking out.

“I saw you duel Ishijima,” he says.

“You’re...you’re the kid who was visiting the other day,” Yuzu says, blinking with surprise.

The boy’s eyes are on Yuya, and there’s something in those eyes that seems to make Yuya stir.

“You were so dazzling when you dueled Ishijima!  I know there’s no way you would cheat just to win.  You’re a real Entertainment Duelist!”

Yuya twitches, his lips parting.  Yuzu feels a bubble in her chest pop.  The boy looks so convinced, so dazzling himself in his conviction, and she knows for sure.  This is what Yuya needs to hear.

“See, Yuya?” she says, putting her hand on his shoulder.  “You touched the audience that counted.”

He still trembles ever so slightly.  Gongenzaka pats him hard on the shoulder, too, and he shakes.  But then his hands push his goggles back up onto the top of his hair, and though his eyes are red, he is not crying.  He swallows.

“Gongenzaka?  Yuzu?” he says.  “Help me learn how to Pendulum Summon.”

Yuzu squeezes his shoulder and smiles.  Yuya is back.

Her Pendulum cards are still burning a hole in her pocket.


	8. R U R I

What was it you were

always saying?

 

The fun has only

just begun?

* * *

The murmur of wings whispers past her ears as she steps forward, and all at once, everything is different.  She actually chokes on it at first. The air is so clean, she’s not used to it. She has to tug her bandana down from her face, one hand on her throat as she doubles over, heaving.  Only once her lungs adjust do her eyes remember that this world is brighter than the one she just left, and she has to sit there, crouched, blinking, while her twitching body acclimates.

In her hand, Assembled Nightingale hums softly.

Kurosaki Ruri swallows.  Her limbs are still trembling, but she stands up anyway, using the wall to steady herself.  Where is she? She needs information.

“Is there where Yuto is?” she whispers to Nightingale.  “Is this where you were trying to take me?”

Nightingale hums, vibrating her fingers, but other than that, does not respond.  She tucks the card gently away in her Extra Deck, and pushes her hair back over her shoulder as she peers out into this new world.

It reminds her of home, she thinks with a pang in her heart and a twist in her stomach.  The buildings sparkle like diamonds against a bright blue sky. She can hear the sound of cars humming and honking, can see crowds of people bustling back and forth outside the end of the alley she’s found herself in.  Everyone is dressed so colorfully, and the whole world seems to shine. Just like home had been, once.

She shakes off the feeling.  There isn’t the time nor the space for it.  Her priority is Yuto.

Her tattered black cloak, the only thing left from Yuto, is too conspicuous among this colorful, clean crowd.  Wincing with remorse, she sheds it, tucking it behind the dumpster in front of her. She sends a mental apology to Yuto for discarding his cloak, but she knows he wouldn’t be angry.  Still, it feels like abandoning him once again when it’s no longer around her shoulders.

The rest of her clothes are decent enough; her Resistance scarf is a little tattered, but that could be played off as a fashion statement.  She tends briefly to her hair, but there’s little she can do with it without a brush and mirror. She releases it from her bun and finger combs her hair as best she can.  There’s not much she can do about the soot under her fingernails or the smell of burning buildings that clings to her, but once she gets her hair tucked back into its usual bun, she feels better.  She uses her bandana to wipe her face off, then tucks the bandana into a pocket. Maybe she can pass for a rebellious dirty teenager, rather than a refugee from a dying dimension.

The open sidewalks beckon, and she squares her shoulders.  Confidence, she remind herself as she melts into the crowd.  That’s the most important thing.

She knows what she is looking for, and it is not hiding.  LDS Tower looms over the sparkling city, casting a shadow over the buildings.  That is where she will go. That is where the clues to Yuto’s whereabouts will be.

Her heart pounds.

_“If you want to get out of being carded, you’ll have to come up with something better to share than that,” Shun spits into the soldier’s face._

_He doesn’t really look like a soldier, Ruri thinks, detached, as though her mind is floating somewhere above her body.  He looks like a child, someone that she would have gone to classes with. He still has baby fat in his cheeks. She thinks, maybe, she should hold Shun back a little.  She does not._

_“I— I know something else,” the soldier splutters, tugging uselessly at the hand Shun has knotted into his collar.  “It’s about the Professor. The Professor’s son.”_

_“His...his son?”_

_This startles Shun.  His grip loosens a bit and the kid yanks himself free, falling back against the debris and coughing.  He makes no move to run when both Shun and Ruri lift their disks, his face going white._

_“Yeah, yeah, his son!  The Professor’s got a son, the rumor’s been going around for a while, he was seen at Academia a few years ago.”_

_“What am I supposed to do with that kind of information?” Shun spits, but Ruri grabs his arm, her heart quickening._

_“Is he still in Academia?” she says._

_“N-no, last I heard, the rumor was he’s in another dimension.  In Standard, at the LDS corporation.”_

_“What’s he doing there?”_

_“Look, I don’t know, I swear, that’s all I know about it; Professor’s kept it quiet.  Maybe he’s there to scout for a Standard invasion, I don’t know, please.”_

_Shun’s lip curls and he lifts his disk, but Ruri pushes it down.  Shun shoots her a look._

_“Go,” she tells the soldier._

_He doesn’t hesitate.  He bolts to his feet and scrambles off among the fires and the wreckage, vanishing from sight._

_“You’re too soft,” Shun says, but it doesn’t sound angry.  He sounds remorseful. “You should have stayed back at the camp.”_

_“I know you think I can’t handle it, Shun.  But you promised you wouldn’t card him if he gave us information.”_

_“Useless information,” Shun says, spitting onto the ground.  “And he’ll be back with more, you know that.”_

_“If we don’t keep our word, we’ll run the risk of becoming them.”_

_“If that’s what it takes.”_

_Ruri fixes him in a stare, and Shun looks uncomfortable.  His arm slips slowly back down to his side._

_“I can’t lose you,” he says, quietly.  “If that one doesn’t track us down, the next one will.  I can’t lose someone else. Especially not you.”_

_“I can handle myself.  And Yuto is alive, Shun, I know he is.”_

_Shun just shakes his head, looking like he’s about to cry around his wry smile.  Ruri’s chest tightens, and she knows that he doesn’t believe her. She knows that he’s already given up on Yuto._

Would you give up on me, too, if I was the one who disappeared in the night?

_It’s an unproductive question.  Besides, she has another plan to formulate, one that hums along with Nightingale in the back of her mind._

_The Professor has a son.  The son is in Standard._

_Maybe she can make a trade._

Ruri waits for the LDS doors to slide open and walks through.  It’s an ordinary lobby. It doesn’t look like the staging zone of a new commander ready to start an invasion against Maiami.  But she doesn’t know anything, anything at all about this son. That’s what she needs to find out. Information is her power.

She wanders over to look at the displays on the wall; the receptionist is busy talking to a mother ferrying a very bored looking child.  LDS is a duel school, she realizes. She knew nothing about it other than the name the soldier gave her. A duel school would be an excellent place to secretly train soldiers.  Perhaps this son really is an invasion commander.

Her eyes flicker around the room for some sign of anything she can use.  She doesn’t know who the son is, his name, or anything. The receptionist is done talking to the parent and child and waves them down the hall, looking relieved.  Her eyes meet Ruri’s.

“Oh, hello, dear,” she says, smiling.  “How can I help you today? Are you looking to enroll?”

Ruri smiles as brightly as she can manage.

“I'm thinking about it,” she says.  “What can you tell me about this school?”


	9. Y U Z U

**Reality is**

**too tough to swallow**

 

**Don’t run that way, love**

**please don’t run that way**

**again**

* * *

Yuzu yawns.  The yawn ripples through her entire body and she feels like she’s lost her center of gravity for a moment, swaying in the school gate.

“Hanging in there?” Yuya teases.

“Shush,” she says, smacking him lightly on the shoulder.  “I wasn’t the one calling out Pendulum Scales in my sleep.”

Yuya looks mock hurt, pouting at Yuzu.  He looks so silly that her sleepy brain has to giggle.  A few students swerve around them to get out onto the sidewalk, and Yuzu remembers to start walking again.

“We were up really late last night, weren’t we?” she says. 

“Oh boy, were we,” Yuya yawns.  “But we figured out Pendulums! Thanks for all your help, Yuzu.”

“Gongenzaka did most of the dueling,” Yuzu says.  “I just watched.”

_ And learned how to use Pendulums, too... _

Her deck still feels heavy against her waist.  She’s going to have to find a way to tell Yuya about it, soon.  Right now, he’s riding the high again from learning how to use them for real this time, and his next duel, he’ll dazzle even more people with the dueling he invented in front of everyone.  What will happen when she reveals what she has? Will he shut down? Will he be upset with her for hiding it? Will he lose his sparkle again and feel useless, redundant, if someone else has his special cards?  Oh, god, he definitely will. That’s the way Yuya is. She can’t tell him. She  _ has  _ to tell him.

“Yuya-niichan!  Yuzu-neechan!”

Yuzu tilts her bangs out of her eyes and smiles.  Futoshi reaches them first, nearling bowling into her with the ferocity of his gallop.  Ayu and Tatsuya are close behind, waving and smiling.

“Oh, hey guys!  On your way to You Show?” Yuya says.

“Yup!! We thought we’d meet with you on the way there!” says Ayu, beaming.

“Did you figure out Pendulum summoning?” Futoshi asks, leaning forward towards Yuya with his eyes alight.  “Did you, did you?”

“Yup!  With help from Yuzu and Gongenzaka!”

“You have to show us!!” Futoshi cries.

He throws his arms in the air and jumps on his tiptoes a few times.  Ayu joins in by pumping her fist in the air, the pair of them chanting  _ show us, show us, show us _ .

“We can do another exhibition at school, geez,” Yuzu says with a laugh.  “Hold your horses.”

A soft cough sounds behind her.  She ignores it at first, thinking it’s just another student leaving from school behind them.  The cough comes again, more insistent this time. She blinks, and looks back over her shoulder and the same time as Yuya.

“Ah, Sakaki-kun,” the young man says with a very annoying, flourishing tone.  Yuzu immediately dislikes him.

He’s a little taller than the two of them, with his brown hair and blond bangs slicked in a decidedly spoiled sort of style.  He’s wearing the same uniform as them, but she only vaguely thinks he might be familiar. Maybe from another class?

“Yes?” Yuya says, looking confused.

The boy claps his hands together, smiling broadly.

“Hello!” he says.  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sakaki-kun! I saw your dazzling display against Strong Ishijima!”

Yuya blushes a bit at that and ducks his head, rubbing the back of his neck.

“It wasn’t that dazzling,” he says.

“Oh, don’t be so modest!  That new summoning type you used was remarkable!  What was it called again?”

“Pendulum summoning,” Yuzu says, turning around to fully face him.  “Who are you, anyway?”

“Ah, where are my manners?  I’m Sawatari Shingo, and I’m something of a fan,” he says, sweeping a slight bow.

Yuya seems to be eating this up, a bit red in the cheeks still and his eyes shining.  She hates to step all over his excitement, but something about this boy rubs her the wrong way, so she pinches Yuya on the shoulder to snap him out of it.

“Is there something we can do for you?” she says.

“Ah, well, I did have a little something of a request...I was hoping perhaps you could demonstrate Pendulum summoning for me!  I only got to see it the once, and I’m eager to see it again.”

“You can come with us to You Show and watch if you’d like,” Yuzu says.

“Actually, I was hoping you all might join me as LDS’s Duel Arena.”

Ayu, Tatsuya, and Futoshi all let out a  _ whoaaa _ almost in synch, and even Yuya looks a little surprised, but Yuzu just huffed.  Now she knows why she doesn’t like him. He smells like rich people.

“We’re not LDS students,” she says.

“That’s not a problem at all!  I have one of the fields rented out today; I thought it would be superb to see Pendulum summoning on one of the larger stages again!”

“We’re supposed to be going to You Show,” Yuzu says firmly, but Ayu grabs her arm.

“Please!!” she says, giving Yuzu puppy dog eyes.  “Please, Yuzu-neechan, I want to see Pendulum summoning!”

“We’ve never been to LDS, let’s make it a field trip!” Futoshi says, grabbing her other arm and double teaming on the puppy dog eyes.

Yuzu groans.  She looks towards Yuya, hoping that he’ll back her up.

Unfortunately, she can tell right away that she won’t get any help from him.  He looks still a little starstruck at someone calling themselves his fan.

She has to admit, too, that she’s a  _ little _ curious to scope out a rival school.

She gives in.

“All right, one duel,” she says, sighing.  “But we have to go straight to school after that!  My dad will flip.”

“Yay!” Futoshi cries, throwing his arms in the air.

“Yay!” Ayu shouts, mirroring him.

“Oh, you absolutely won’t be disappointed,” Sawatari says, smiling broadly.  “I guarantee it.”

Yuzu really doesn’t like him.

* * *

The kids all ooh and aah at the massive dueling field, and Yuzu feels a little guilty when she, too has to stop and gape for a moment.  So this is what an actually funded duel school looks like? 

She blushes and tucks the traitorous thought away, sending a mental apology to her father.  Futoshi is spinning in circles to see the whole thing, his mouth hanging open. Ayu has grabbed Tatsuya’s arm and is pointing excitedly to how much space there is in the stands.

“It’s really okay for us to have a duel here?” Yuya asks, looking a little bug-eyed himself.

“Of course!” Sawatari says.  “LDS students can put in requests to use the field in slots, and I have today’s slot.”

_ Wonder how much he paid the school to get a slot _ , Yuzu thinks.  It’s rude of her, and she really shouldn’t be judging him, but he just gives her an irritable sort of feeling.  She hopes Yuya kicks his butt.

Her vision flickers towards a faint movement, and she turns to see three other kids in their same middle school uniform walking over.  Sawatari waves to them. Once again, Yuzu feels a strange, twisting feeling in her stomach. Something feels off here, but she can’t put her finger on it.

“Are these your friends?” she asks.

“They were really eager to see Pendulum Summoning too, so I invited them,” Sawatari says with a smile.  “Speaking of which, Sakaki-kun, I heard that there’s a special card you need to Pendulum Summon. Would it be all right if we saw them?”

Yuya stops gaping around at the stadium and looks at Sawatari.  It takes him a second to register the request. Immediately, he bites his lip, looking uncertain.

“Well...they’re pretty special,” he says haltingly.

“Oh, of course, of course!  I just want to have a look, is all.  I really love the cards and all.”

Yuya bites his lip.  Yuzu starts to reach for him, to tell him he doesn’t have to.  But Yuya gives in, popping open his deck and ruffling through it for the cards.

“I guess a look can’t hurt,” he mumbles.

He looks a little upset when Sawatari plucks the cards from his fingers and turns them towards him, his eyes alight with interest.  His friends crowd around him to get a look.

“So these are what you need to Pendulum Summon?” he says.  “How interesting. They certainly look different from other cards.”

“Uh, yeah,” Yuya says, shifting back and forth on his feet.  “Can I have them back? If you want to duel, I’ll need them.”

Sawatari doesn’t seem to hear him, still examining the cards.  Yuzu takes a step forward.

“Can you give Yuya his cards back now?” she says.

Sawatari’s eyes flicker up to her, and then to Yuya.

“Doesn’t it seem a bit unfair?” Sawatari said.  “You’re the only one in the world who has these.”

Yuzu feels like she’s been punched in the gut and she starts to tremble.

_ That’s...not exactly true. _

“I...” Yuya starts, looking suddenly very uncomfortable.  “I mean, I didn’t...they just happened.”

“Hmm,” Sawatari says.

He turns around, without giving the cards back.  Yuzu takes another step forward and reaches for his shoulder.  

A hand grabs her by the wrist and she flinches as one of Sawatari’s friends hauls her back.

“Hey!” she says.  “What the heck??”

“I think these are absolutely the kind of cards I want to add to my collection,” Sawatari says.

“They’re not yours!” Yuzu shouts.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m going to trade for them!  Here, Yuya. You can have these.”

He pulls a small stack of cards out of his pocket and tosses them towards Yuya.  Yuya’s eyes widen as the stack explodes against the ground, cards scattering over his feet, and he quickly drops down to gather them up.

“They’re trash, so I think they fit you nicely,” Sawatari says with a laugh.

_ Trash? _ Yuzu thinks with a stab of anger.  How can he treat the cards like that!

Yuya looks like he’s been punched in the stomach.  His hands tremble where he’s gathered up the cards, his thumbs against the art.

“How...how can you say that about your cards?” he says.

Sawatari’s friend tries to haul Yuzu back, and she hears Tatsuya and the others yelp and cry out. Yuya is still trembling there on the ground, looking pale and sick.

“It wouldn’t be fun if I didn’t get a chance to try these out, though, so how about we have that duel after all, Yuya?” Sawatari says with a laugh.

Yuya’s chest heaves.  He clutches the discarded cards as though he can shield them, hands trembling.  Yuzu’s chest clenches.

She rips her arm from the boy’s grip and throws herself between Sawatari and Yuya.  At the same moment, she hears the telltale hum of an ARC System, and the world around her starts to glitch and fuzz.

“No,” she says, head rushing as a dark, ominous city starts to rise up all around her and under her feet.  “You’re going to duel me.”


	10. Y U Y A / S O R A

**Swelling up on the other side**

 

**I don’t know**

**how much longer**

**I can ignore you**

* * *

Yuya chokes as his grip on Futoshi slips.  The boy grabs harder onto Yuya’s arm, digging deep enough to leave bruises, but at least he’s not falling.

“Futoshi, try to climb up a little closer,” Yuya says.  “That’s it. Don’t look down. Remember practicing with heights at school?”

“Those heights weren’t real,” Futoshi says, tears in his eyes.  “Our duel arena isn’t big enough for real height!”

This is bad.  He’s dizzy and aching with pain from holding on, and he can’t quite remember how this ended up happening.  He remembers Yuzu jumping in front of him. He remembers hearing the kids cry out with panic, and seeing the ARC System coming on, and diving back for the kids just as a huge tower exploded underneath them, sending all four of them shooting up into the air.  He’s not sure how high up they are but it is much higher than anything he’s practiced with.

“Don’t let go, Futoshi!” Ayu cries, her voice thick with panicked tears.

“It’s gonna be okay,” Yuya says.  “It’s gonna be okay, we just have to trust Yuzu.  Have you ever known Yuzu to lose?”

“N-No.”

“Then it’s going to be okay.  Just climb up a little closer towards me, I won’t let you go.  We have to do what we can to support Yuzu.”

His heart is in his throat, however, as Futoshi manages to wriggle close enough for Yuya to throw his arm around his waist and hug him a little closer.  Ayu and Tatsuya are clinging to his back, and his other arm is aching with pain from where they’re hanging off the tilted building. He’s not sure how much longer he can hold them up.  And Yuzu is...she’s not doing well.

He suppresses the urge to flinch when Yuzu cries out.  She nearly goes off the bridge below, but she manages to hook her arm into one of the suspensions.  Even from here he can see her face go pale with pain from the yanking on her arm, but she keeps her grip, dangling from the bridge.

_ This is all my fault _ , he thinks, his heart in his throat.   _ If I hadn’t been so stupid and full of myself, if I hadn’t let Sawatari take those cards, if I had been the one dueling... _

Yuzu hauls herself back up onto the bridge, gasping for breath.  Sawatari stands lazily on the other side of the digital harbor, his monsters looming around him.  The pillars of light with Yuya’s treasured Pendulum cards send Sawatari into an eerie cast of pale blue, and he looks truly frightening.  His stomach roils with pain seeing his monsters over there. How can...how can Sawatari Pendulum summon? That was...Yuya spent so much time and effort learning how to do it, it was something he’s mastered.  But Sawatari just...out of nowhere...with  _ his _ cards...

“Yuzu-chan, it might be easier to just call it quits now,” he shouts across the water.

“Don’t you ever call me so familiarly again,” Yuzu snaps back.  “I’m taking Yuya’s cards back whether you like it or not!”

But she looks pale, and her legs sway when she pushes herself to her feet, her pendulum smacking her in the chest with its violent swinging.  This is all his  _ fault _ .  If only he had been the one down there, Yuzu wouldn’t have to suffer like this!

Futoshi nearly slips from his grip again, and he cries out.  Yuya grabs him harder— his grip on the building slips. He chokes on an unreleased scream, and Ayu and Tatsuya scream too, and he grabs hold harder and they halt.

Yuzu’s eyes leap up with panic towards them, her whole body tensing up.

“We’re fine,” Yuya shouts.  “We’re fine, Yuzu! Just do your best!”

Yuzu’s chest rises and falls so harshly that he can see it even all the way up here.  Her eyes won’t leave the four of them. Dammit! If he hadn’t gotten them all caught, she could focus!

And then a different expression crosses Yuzu’s face, her eyebrows furrowing with...with guilt?

_ I’m sorry _ , she mouths at him.  Sorry? For what?

Yuzu turns towards Sawatari and inhales once, sharply.  She tugs two cards from her hand.

“With Scale 1 Adagio, the Melodious Minstrel, and Scale 6 Allegro, the Melodious Minstrel, I set the Pendulum Scale!”

The air fizzes and hums against Yuya’s skin, and light explodes from either side of Yuzu.  Two beautiful, brand new monsters that Yuya has never seen before rise up in the middle of the light, taking up places on either side of Yuzu.

_ Oh _ , Yuya thinks, his stomach dropping out.   _ Oh.  Yuzu...Yuzu can... _

For a second, he’s not sure how to feel.  These aren’t his monsters, like Sawatari stole from him.  These are new. These are something that Yuzu just has. How long has she...?

“I can now special summon monsters between levels 2 and 5!  Come forth, my monsters!”

The bridge alights with sparkles, and he hears the music of Yuzu’s monsters filling up the field.  The gloomy city lights up as though it’s become Yuzu’s stage. But Yuzu herself still looks grim and solemn, pale and trembling.

_ I’m sorry _ , she’d mouthed before Pendulum Summoning.  How long has she had them? How long has she been hiding them?  He had thought Pendulum Summoning was...was something that only he could do.  It was going to be what saved his dueling.

Yuzu looks like she’s going to cry.

“Yuzu!” he shouts, and she flinches, looking up.

He gives her the biggest smile he can manage.

“You’ve got this!” he shouts.  “Duel the way you always do, Yuzu— smile!”

Yuzu’s eyes widen.  Her mouth drops open.

_ I’m not mad _ , he thinks, and he’s surprised, then, that it’s true.   _ I’m not mad at her. _

She smiles tentatively.  He grins back as wide as he can, and her smile twitches a little bigger.  She nods, and turns back to the duel.

Yuya looks up at her shining Pendulum pillars, and feels a curious sort of tightening in his chest.

_ I’m not mad _ , he repeats.   _ I’m not sure what I am. _

* * *

He perches at the edge of his seat, flicking his tongue lazily against the tiny green sucker in his hand.  These Action Fields really are something, he thinks as he looks over the massive dark city that’s filled up the duel arena.  Drop one of these down in a battlefield, and you’d confuse the hell out of your opponents. Not a bad idea, actually, though he’s not sure how you’d program such a big, complicated field to be portable.

Inside the city, however, lights glimmer and shine, and the sound of beautiful music plays past his ears.  It doesn’t fit the ominous look of the city, and yet somehow it transforms it. He can only see the duelist’s back, her pigtails bouncing as she leaps into her monster’s arms and lets it carry her up as high as she can for the final blow.

Impressive, he thinks.  The duelist herself was good.  And that Pendulum Summoning thing.  He didn’t have intel on that. Seemed like it could be new for this dimension, too.

The duel field flickers and then begins to fade, gently lowering the captives at the top of the tower down to the ground.  The moment that they reach it safely and her monsters vanish, the girl bolts towards them. The little girl grabs her in a big hug, crying, and they hug tightly for a moment.

Once she’s done with the hug, and checking on the other kids, he sees her turn to the other boy her age.  She holds out a pair of cards, and he accepts them. He can’t hear what they’re saying, but they both look a little awkward and somber.

Her opponent, however, looks pissed.  He watches the opponent and his friends start marching over to them, and the girl and boy flinch and turn, tense.

He pops his sucker into his mouth and crunches off the rest of it, chewing loudly.  Then he vaults the wall and goes in.

The four kids are honestly wusses, and they drop from just the barest of taps.  They never even saw him coming. Is this dimension really all that, that they need to send reconnaissance agents for it?  He’s pretty sure they could take it out in a matter of seconds.

Both the boy and the girl look at him with wide eyes when he turns towards them, grinning.

“Hi!” he says.  “That was really something!”

“Uh, who are you?” the boy asks.

He grins, chewing on the end of his empty lollipop stick.

“I’m Sora,” he says.  “Shiunin Sora! And I’d like to become your student, miss!”


	11. Y U Z U / S H U N

**Why can’t you like it**

 

**this easy lucky illusion**

**that i made for you**

**reality is only confusion**

 

**let's not go back**

* * *

 “Ahh, so this is your school, _shishou_?”

He sounds like a kid in a candy store, and looks it, too, with his big shiny eyes and the lollipop in his mouth.  Yuzu loves her school, but she feels like he’s probably laying it on a little too thick, looking around at the tiny little lobby as though it’s the best thing he’s ever seen.  Considering they just came from LDS, she feels like he’s just being polite.

Yuya touches her on the arm, and he grimaces when she looks at him.

“Are you sure about this?” he says.  “He just kinda came out of nowhere.”

“A student is a student,” Yuzu says, shrugging.

Sure, she’s a little weirded out that some random kid just suddenly declared he wants to be her student, but a student of hers is a student of You Show, and she’s not going to turn down another application!  In fact, while she’s thinking about it, she makes her way over to her father’s desk and goes behind it to get out the paperwork.

“Do you mind filling this out, Shiunin-san?” she asks.

“Just call me Sora, _shishou_!” Sora says cheerily.  “Sure!”

He crunches on his lollipop without breaking it while he hops over and starts to fill out his name.

“So is Pendulum summoning something your school came up with?” he asks.  “I know Sakaki-san used it against Strong Ishijima, but you’ve got it too, _shishou_!”

Yuzu hesitates.  She glances up at Yuya, and Yuya won’t quite look at her.  She bites her lip. Is he...actually mad? He said he wasn’t, but maybe he actually is.  She knows Yuya better than anyone, and she gets it. He’s probably feeling hurt, and lost.  Pendulum Summoning was the only thing giving him the edge, the only thing making him feel like he stood out from the lonely boy he used to be.  And she took that away from him.

Sora is staring at her now, and she realizes that she has to answer.  So she smiles.

“Well, we’ll see,” she says.  “It’s still getting fleshed out, you know.”

She needs to talk to Yuya.  Alone. She’s not sure when she’s going to get the chance, though.

“Ah, that makes sense!” Sora says.  “Here, _shishou_ , I finished!”

Yuzu smiles as she accepts the form and tucks it away for her father to look over later.  Actually, where is he?

Her question is answered when the door bursts open.

“Where have all of you been!!!” her father says, looking like he’s about to tear his own hair out.  “I’ve been calling all of your schools to see what happened to all of you!!”

Oops.  Yuzu blushes.

“Dad, I can explain,” she says.  Her father looks like he’s going to start burning like his own catchphrase, so she quickly shoves Sora forwards.  “But later! Dad, this is Shiunin Sora, he wants to enroll at You Show!”

“Hi, mister!” Sora says cheerily.

Her father immediately changes course, as quickly as though he’d just swerved around a corner, and he’s all big, excited smiles.

“Oh, really??  Well welcome aboard, Shiunin-san!  We’re happy to have you here at You Show!”

Yuzu is making plans in her head as quickly as she can, trying to diffuse both situations, her dad’s worry and Yuya’s sadness.  She smiles and squeezes Sora’s shoulders.

“I have an idea, Sora!  What if you and Yuya had a practice duel?”

“Hm?  Me and him?” Sora says.  He glances at Yuya and tilts his head.  Yuya also stands bolt straight, looking surprised.

“Yeah!  You said you were interested in Pendulum Summoning, right?  Well, Yuya was the one who invented it, so dueling him will be a great experience to see how it works, right?”

“Hmmm.”

For a moment, Sora just puts his hands behind his head and wiggles his lollipop stick with his lips, considering Yuya.  Yuya glances at Yuzu, as though trying to figure out what she’s up to. Yuzu just smiles. Even if she has Pendulum Summoning, she can help Yuya feel better when she reminds him that he did it first.  Besides, maybe a duel will give him some more confidence.

She’s also not sure she’s ready to let her _dad_ know that she has Pendulums until she and Yuya have had a chance to discuss it on their own, without anyone else around.  The kids already know, and she knows that they’re dying to talk about it by the way all three of them are practically vibrating.

Finally, Yuya sighs, and smiles.  He nods his head towards the dueling field.

“I’m down for it if you are, Sora,” he says.  “Want to have a go?”

“Okay,” Sora says with a shrug.  “But I’ll want to duel you later too, _shishou_!”

He points at Yuzu when he says this, and Yuzu blushes.  Her father blinks at her with surprise— right, she should probably say something to him about how Sora’s only here because of her, for some reason.  But, well...a student is a student, right?

* * *

Ruri’s here.  She’s absolutely got to be around here somewhere.  He’s a goddamn idiot, he should have known she’d run off and do something reckless like this.

Shun hesitates on the edge of an alleyway, his bandana pulled over his nose and sunglasses over his eyes.  It’s too bright and sunny out, and he feels exposed. Never mind that this city looks like a real, regular city, and not a battlefield, his senses are tingling like fire and he can’t stop checking the sky to make sure there aren’t any low flying bomber monsters, ready to rain hell over his head.  He jumps when he hears a car door slam down the road, and pulls back farther into the alley.

_Ruri, where did you go, and how did you even get here?_

He feels sick to his stomach.  His Duel Disk feels heavy with the prototype dimension jumper that Sayaka built.  They only had the one, and Ruri didn’t have it. But she’s here, somehow, and he has to find her before she got herself mixed up into something bad.  

 _Reckless_ , he thinks, not wanting to think about the other possibility.  She’s absolutely come here, after they had heard the information about the Professor’s son.  She probably wants to try and corner him for information about Yuto. That is, if she hadn’t just been carded, and that’s why she disappeared.

No.  That isn’t what had happened, he knows it.  She’s here, still looking for Yuto. His chest clenches.   _Yuto is gone_.  That’s the only explanation.  He’d been carded, like the thousands of other friends and family he’d lost.  Academia took no prisoners, and if Yuto disappeared, if someone with his skills vanished, then there’s only one other possibility.  Ruri can’t accept it.

And Shun can’t accept it if he loses Ruri.

“No, I’m positive the energy spike was coming from around here.”

“It wasn’t even that big of a spike.”

“Big enough to count as an anomaly.  We have to check it out.”

Voices.  There’s someone up ahead.  Shun presses himself to the wall, clenching back on his breath.  His heart roars in his chest.

_Ruri, where are you?_

Maybe they won’t come around the corner.  Maybe they’ll walk right past. He doesn’t know enough about this city’s alleyway system, so there’s no way he could escape.  He can dimension leap back to XYZ, but not without Ruri. He won’t retreat until he has his baby sister.

He catches a glimpse of the blue uniform as the man comes past the end of the alley, and for a moment, he almost chokes, almost blacks out. It’s too close to the blue of Obelisk.  His Duel Disk jerks up. He’ll fight to the death, they’ll never take him alive, they’ll never _leave_ this duel alive—

A hand grabs his wrist and yanks it down, turning him around with a snap as another arm comes around his waist.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” he hears Ruri’s voice.  “Honestly, _oniisan._ ”

Shun lets out a thick gasp.  Oh god. Oh thank god, that’s his sister’s voice. He’s not sure how she found him so quickly, but he’s nearly going to fall over with the relief that he’s hearing her voice, that she’s alive and right next to him.  He was right, she did come to Standard.

“Ruri,” he says.  “You need to come home—”

“ _You_ need to not mess up my cover here,” Ruri says.  “You’re lucky Assembled Nightingale noticed you were here.”

She moves quickly, hurrying him down the alley towards the light of the city, and Shun balks a moment.  Ruri rolls her eyes. She reaches up and yanks his bandana down from his face, and then takes his sunglasses, tucking them into the pocket of her...her uniform.  She’s in a different uniform.

“Ruri, what’s going on?”

“I’m enrolled at LDS.  I’m going to take part in a tournament this dimension is holding, being hosted by Akaba Reiji, the CEO of LDS Corporation.”

“You _what_?”

“Akaba Reiji has the information we need about Yuto, I know it.  Or if he doesn’t, he can lead us back to his father.”

“Ruri,” Shun says.  “Yuto is—”

“Don’t say it,” Ruri hisses, and then he notices the tears in her eyes.  They stop right at the end of the alleyway, and Ruri finally lets him go, turning towards him.

The uniform doesn’t suit her, he thinks.  It’s too crisp. Her wartime clothes didn’t suit her either, though.

“Even if Yuto is gone,” she says haltingly.  “I can do more for the Resistance here. I can get information.  I can _do something_ , Shun.”

She stares up at him, and there it is, there’s that fiery determination that he knows in his sister all too well.  If he wants to bring her back to XYZ, he’ll have to drag her.

And maybe he shouldn’t.  Maybe, despite the fact that the Professor’s son is here, she’s safer here, for now.  She’s making a good point.

He sighs.  He runs a hand down his face.

“Fine,” he says, through grit teeth. “So what do you want me to do?”

“What?”

“If you’re going to do this, I’m going to help.  What can I do?”

Ruri blinks at him, lips parting.  Then she smiles, and laughs.

“You can start by not carding anyone,” she says.  “We don’t want to attract any unnecessary attention, now do we?”


	12. Y U Z U / Y U Y A

**Even on the worst days**

**I still love you.**

 

Shaking shaking shaking shaking

I’ll take it down eventually

I’ll break down your wall soon.

* * *

Her Duel Disk chirps at her, and she taps the screen to reveal the message accompanied by the hippo she’s used as Yuya’s profile picture.

_Meet me?_

She swallows.  After the commotion with Sora and Yuya’s duel, after learning something new about Pendulum Summoning and then the topic of the Maiami Championship and Yuya’s eligibility and everything, she still hasn’t had the chance to talk to him face to face about Pendulum Summoning.  Her stomach twists nervously. She knows what he wants to talk about.

 _Sure_ , she texts back.   _The usual place?_

He’s already waiting for her there when she forges out into the cool evening air, leaning back against the railing of lining the tiny playground.  He smiles, and the street lamps flickering on flash over his teeth.

“Hey,” he says.

“Hey yourself,” she says back, in a desperate attempt at normalcy.  But she feels like normalcy ended the moment Yuya Pendulum Summoned, and she’s not sure what this new world is anymore.

She walks up until she’s in front of him, and then stops.  The street lamp over their heads flickers on, enveloping them in a beam of light, and she holds her arm with one hand, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot.

“Yuzu, you know I’m not mad at you, right?” he says, finally, breaking the silence.

“I know that!” she blurts.  “Of...of course I know that.  You’re not that kind of person, to be mad at me for something like this.”

“You’re acting all nervous, though,” Yuya says, rubbing the back of his neck. “I...I just don’t want you to be all worried over me all the time.”

“I’m not worrying.”

“You absolutely are.”

Yuzu grumbles at him, but he just looks at her, and she has to look away.  Of course she was worrying over him. Yuya is...he’s been struggling, for so long, and it hurts to see him like this.  

“Pendulum Summoning made you so happy,” she whispers.  “I could see it. It was like someone had just lifted something off your shoulders that you’ve been carrying for years, and you could breathe again.”

Yuya looks down at his feet.

“Is that why you hid it from me?” he asks softly.

“I didn’t want to take it away from you.  I didn’t know where they came from, either.  But I thought...I’ve been dueling for so long without them, I could keep doing it.  You’d never have to have it taken away from you.”

Yuya bites his lip.  He shifts onto his other leg and begins to fiddle with his bracelet.

“I won’t use them anymore,” Yuzu says.  “I only used them the once, but I won’t use them anymore, okay?  It’s your thing, now, and...”

Yuya cut her off.

“You know, I had a talk with your dad about Pendulum Summoning.”

“What?  My dad? When?”

“After Sora left, and you went to walk him to the door.”

The bracelet glimmers as he twists it back and forth.

“I kind of asked him what he thought about it.  Like, what he thought I should do with it, and what would happen if someone else learned how to do it too.”

“And?” Yuzu says softly.

“He pretty much told me to get my head out of my ass,” Yuya says, cracking a smile.  “But, you know, in a way your dad would have said it. A lot of ‘hot-blooded’ in there somewhere too.”

Yuzu giggles in spite of herself.  That certainly sounds like her dad.

“But he told me that of course someone else was going to learn how to do it sometime,” Yuya continues.  “And I just needed to focus on how I was going to make _my_ dueling better, not just leaning on Pendulum Summoning.”

He lets out a thin sigh.

“I was really surprised when you Pendulum Summoned, Yuzu, and...and I can’t say that I didn’t feel a little upset.  But...if anyone had to learn how to do it next, I’m really, really glad it was you.”

“Yuya...”

“Don’t stop using Pendulums, Yuzu, okay?  I want you to be able to use them without worrying about me.”

He smiles, and Yuzu feels faint tears in her eyes.

“Let’s both keep learning how to use it and make it work, so that both of us can keep up the shining Entertainment duels.  Maybe if we’re both using them, it’ll kick me in the butt to try harder.”

“Oh you,” Yuzu says, rubbing at the corners of her eyes with the heels of her hands.  “I’m sorry I kept it from you, Yuya.”

“I’m sorry I made you feel like you had to.  I’m not that much of a crybaby anymore, you know.”

Yuzu can’t help but smile, and she hugs him.  He hugs her back, and the pendulum on her chest digs into their chests between them.

“Thank you,” she whispers.  “I promise I’ll use Pendulums well.”

“I promise, too,” Yuya says.  “Let’s knock the whole world dead at this Championship, huh?”

Yuzu laughs.

“Don’t you not even qualify yet?” she says.  “You’d better get your butt in gear for real, mister.  If can’t duel you in the tournament, I’ll kick your butt.”

“Don’t worry, I have a plan!” Yuya says, squeezing her tightly.  “I already talked to Nico about it. You’ll see me there, no worries.”

Yuzu drops her face against his shoulder and exhales.  She feels like a weight has come off her shoulders, and she can breathe again.  Yuya’s not upset with her, and they’re both going to spread Pendulums to the world with their dueling.

She has to get stronger, she thinks.  She absolutely has to get stronger. She has to learn how to use Pendulums the best she can.

* * *

Yuya keeps thinking about Yuzu’s tight, nervous face when they met up, all throughout class.

 _She was really worried_ , he thinks. _I keep doing that.  I keep making her worry, all the time.  She didn’t even want to tell me about her Pendulums because she was afraid of hurting me._

He sighs.

_It’s mostly my fault.  I am kind of a pain._

His eyes wander across to where Sora is currently dumping an entire pack of pixie sticks into a cup of ice cream, and mixing the whole concoction up with a cookie, scooping some out on top of it to take a bite.  Geez. What kind of stomach did that kid have?

A plan was forming in his mind, and he just wanted class to be over so that he could make it happen.  The bell didn’t ring a moment too soon, and he was out of his desk, grabbing Sora by the shoulder, and hauling him into the hall before the echo even finished.

“Gah!  What’s going on, Yuya?” Sora says as they burst out into the hall.

Yuya turns around and puts both of his hands on Sora’s shoulders.

 _I need to get stronger, so that Yuzu won’t worry about me so much_ , he thinks.

“Listen, Sora, I don’t have a whole lot of time between now and qualifying for the tournament,” he said.  “Do you think you can teach me how to Fusion summon?”


	13. R E I J I / R U R I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> earlier update just so i don't forget since i won't be able to update later today;;;;

 A full-force revolution

 **How long can I last against you**  

* * *

 “There it is again.  It’s much stronger than any of ours.”

“And it’s coming from inside LDS itself?”

“Yes, president.”

Reiji purses his lips.  He drums his fingers on the desk.

This is the third or fourth time that some large burst of XYZ summoning energy has come from his own building.  That’s not counting the large bursts of Fusion energy, stronger than his students can produce, coming from outside around the city.  The Fusion is slightly more worrying, of course, for obvious reasons. But the XYZ energy is simply curious. Are his students simply progressing further than he expected?  Or is it a dimension native?

And if it’s a dimension native, what are they doing here?

“Which field did it come from?”

“10A.”

“Send me a list of the students using the field at that time.”

The requested information appears on his own computer screen where he sits in the control station, overlooking the rest of the large screens and the people in the seats below him.  There are six student profiles looking back at him. Four are XYZ course students, which makes sense. Two are from other courses, one from Fusion and one from Synchro. Both are the top students in their respective courses, and the top student from the XYZ course is also one of the other four.  He quickly crosses off the two from the other courses; their decks are scanned every time they are inserted into the disk, and neither of them have an XYZ monster.

“Cross reference these students with the ones who have been on the fields at the same time the last spikes were recorded,” Reiji says.

Someone runs the algorithm, and the pool shrinks to three people.  Three?

“It looks like the spike has only been recorded during tag duels,” someone answers the question for him before he asks it.  “These three are the ones who were present during each spike.”

Reiji glances over the names.  Sakuragi Yuu, Shijima Hokuto, and Kurosaki Ruri.  Sakuragi and Shijima are both the top students respectively in the Senior and Junior Youth classes of the XYZ course.  It wouldn’t be out of reason for one or both of them to have suddenly improved their XYZ summon energy. The third one, however, makes his gaze catch and linger.  Kurosaki Ruri. He clicks on her profile and takes a glance through it. She enrolled just a week ago. Few teacher notes so far, except that she is quiet and studious.  No previous dueling school listed. Her transcripts from a public Tokyo middle school were still pending; LDS didn’t require transcripts right away to accept students. It’s too much paperwork and Reiji wants as many students as possible as quickly as possible, considering what he fears they will be up against sooner rather than later.

Something about the girl’s student ID picture makes Reiji uncomfortable.  He can’t put his finger on it. He stares at it for a long time, trying to make sense of why it’s giving him such  a strange feeling, like he’s seen her before.

Come to think of it, he had the same odd feeling the day he’d seen Sakaki Yuya on television, performing the brand new Pendulum Summoning.  But that...he knows why Yuya looks so eerily familiar. Why did Kurosaki Ruri?

He closes the information and flicks it from the screen to another employee’s computer.

“Keep an eye on those three.  Send a note to the teachers that they should be paired off into one on one matches so that we can narrow down the source.”

The woman nods and gets to typing. Reiji leans back in his chair to consider.

It’s been quiet in the city.  Almost too quiet. Aside from the spikes of XYZ in his school, a few brief spikes of Fusion around the city, and two brief energy blips that _might_ have been a dimension jump, there’s been little to report.  They say no news is good news, but Reiji hates that saying. No news means someone is hiding something.

His brief thoughts of Sakaki Yuya and Pendulum Summoning return to him.  That’s something he needs to investigate further. Pendulum Summoning is brand new.  It belongs to Standard. It’s the edge he desperately needs, and one he needs to continue exploring.  He opens up his files on the prototype progress. It’s maddeningly slow, he sees immediately. Despite having Sawatari test it for him, it hasn’t given him too much progress.  He needs to go to the source.

The source.  Reiji’s lips part.  Sawatari dueled against another You Show student during the test.  That You Show student had _also_ had Pendulums. Is this something that You Show Duel School is developing in secret?  It doesn’t seem like it has the capital for that, but it _is_ the school begun by Sakaki Yusho.  He needs to go to You Show itself, and get to the bottom of this.

He stands, his scarf sliding off the chair behind him and falling against the back.  He opens his mouth, to tell his team that he is going to You Show, when something sparks to him.  Something about the other girl, Hiragi Yuzu. He frowns. He opens up the file with the XYZ students again.

 _Oh_ , he thinks, eyes widening.   _That’s_ where he’s seen Kurosaki Ruri’s face before.

* * *

Ruri smiles when Hokuto slaps her on the back.

“Fuck you,” he says goodnaturedly.  “You gotta make it so hard for me, don’t ya, Kurosaki?  Give me a run for my spot.”

“It’s about time someone did,” Masumi says, rolling her eyes.  “You’re getting soft.”

“Say that _after_ your rankings are as high as mine!”

Yaiba just snorts and slings his shinai over one shoulder.  Ruri gives him a smile when he crosses his eyes at her.

“Your rankings don’t even affect each other; you’re in different courses,” he points out.

“Doesn’t matter, mine are still higher than hers!”

“By one point, Shijima!  By _one point_!”

She’s been at LDS for a week, now.  Sometimes, it’s easy to forget why she’s here.  It feels so much like home, like Spade Branch so long ago.  Duel students are the same, loud and excited and just on fire with the love of the game.  She slotted herself in neatly and easily, and without much comment. Even she sometimes feels like she’s been here for much longer; the students are so friendly.

Other times, she looks back over her shoulder at the looming LDS building, and she remembers where she is, and what she’s doing here.

Hokuto and Masumi are still bickering about something, making Ruri wonder again if they’re actually friends.  It was a stroke of luck that got her nestled neatly in with these three, the top students in each LDS course. They know much more than her about how the school works, about the classes, about the other students, and about the president, and with her wide-eyed new student act, she can get away with asking anything.

So now she knows a lot of things: Extra Deck summoning types are brand new.  Only two classes ahead of these three have had the option of learning them. LDS was the one who introduced all of the new summoning types— except a mysterious fourth, called Pendulum Summoning, which is _brand_ new, as in, just appeared a week ago.  Hokuto and Yaiba are constantly throwing theories at each other about where it came from.  Yaiba is insistent that LDS created it and gave it to the boy, Yuya, who fought the champion, as an elaborate advertisement campaign.  Hokuto thinks You Show, a tiny underdog school, probably hacked the Duel Disk to give themselves a pitiful edge.

More importantly, she knows that the president, Akaba Reiji, is a reclusive figure.  The youngest pro duelist in history, he disappeared from the circuits as soon as he got his pro dueling license, to take over the company after his father’s disappearance.  He’s had little to say on that subject. Hokuto is the only one who’s actually met him. In his words, “he has a stick up his butt the size of Antarctica.”

Another important fact: no one at LDS knows anything about the other dimensions.  Hokuto laughed at her incredulously when she made the tiniest mention of it. _“A whole dimension based around one summoning type?  Hey, Yaiba, maybe you’d actually have a chance if there was only Synchro users in the world!”  “Fuck you, Hokuto.”_  They know nothing of the invasion, nothing of Academia.  Even Masumi, who makes Ruri tense up with a near panic attack every time she Fusion summons on the field, just kind of looked at her with confusion when she name dropped Academia, asking her if that was some school in Tokyo.

They might not know, but Ruri has a feeling that the reclusive Akaba Reiji absolutely does.  Her heart clenches when she looks at these three and wonders if they are unknowingly being drafted, if they’re going to be forced into becoming invaders just like Akaba’s father did with Academia.

She wonders if she’ll become their enemy in the future.

Her Duel Disk buzzes, and she takes a look.

“Got a call from your boyfriend?” Yaiba teases, and Ruri rolls her eyes at him.

It’s from Shun.  He’s actually listening to her plans, which surprises her.  She’d thought he’d be more belligerent about it. But he’s kept his word: he’s staying quiet, he’s avoiding XYZ summoning as much as possible, and he’s surreptitiously investigating the areas that Ruri’s undercover mission scopes out.

_No sign of anything suspicious in the LDS harbor warehouses._

She clicks to send a quick _thank you_ message.  When she’s alone, they’ll meet up and discuss their next course of action—

“Sora, I think that’s enough chocolate syrup.”

“You sound like a coward.”

The voice somehow sounds...familiar?  Ruri blinks, and looks back over her shoulder.

She almost chokes.  She drops her school bag.

“Kurosaki?  You all right?” Masumi asks, looking back at the sound.

Ruri isn’t listening.  She’s just bolting forward across the street.  A car honks at her as it skids to a stop just inches from hitting her, and she squeaks when she stumbles forward and around it, but she makes it to the other side of the street and practically smacks into the fence lining the cafe.

The boys both look up with surprise, and Ruri chokes again.

Yuto.  It’s Yuto.  He’s right here, staring at her with wide eyes, his lips parting.  He’s alive and whole and right here and what is he doing in _Standard_?

Before she can force a word out of her throat, Yuto speaks first.

“Yuzu?” he says with surprise.

Not her name.  That’s not her name.

She fumbles, mouth opening and closing several times.  Suddenly she’s noticing the differences. The way his hair flops over his eyes instead of spiking upwards, the soft crimson of his eyes instead of the gray she knows so well.

He’s not Yuto.

The other boy at the table is staring at her with narrow green eyes, and the blue of his jacket looks too familiar.  She has no idea what’s going on, but she knows she’s made a mistake.

“Kurosaki?” Masumi shouts across the street.  “Hey, Kurosaki?”

Ruri and the boy who is not Yuto stare at each other for another choked moment.

Then Ruri bolts.  She leaves him behind, waiting for answers that aren’t coming.


	14. S A W A T A R I / R U R I

**ibelieveibelieveibelieveibelieveibelieveibelieve**

      i believe it's show time

* * *

 

“I’m telling you!  That school is getting a little too big for its britches!  I think it was about time someone took them down a notch.”

Ootomo nods, and Kakimoto makes a grunting sound of agreement.

Sawatari huffs, swinging his bag probably with a little more force than he should.  He’s probably going to smush the cakes. He’s too mad to care too much, which is a rare occurrence.

“You Show Duel School wasn’t even relevant when Sakaki Yusho was still around,” Sawatari says, gesturing at nothing.  He’s loud enough that they’re attracting a couple of looks from the cafes and shops they were passing by but who cares, this is an important complaining session.  “And now they’re hoarding this brand new technology all to themselves? Using the championship to show it off? It’s not fair, I tell you, and I think there’s something fishy about it.”

“Absolutely,” says Yamabe, and Kakimoto makes another sound of agreement.

They’re nearly clear of the buildings, now, and heading out near the harbor.  There’s an abandoned warehouse near the ocean that hasn’t seen use in years, but still stands pretty solidly.  Sawatari and his friends have been using it as their base for years, now.

Sawatari jabs his finger forward to better illustrate his point as they come around the building.  Ootomo is the only one without a bag, so he jogs ahead to drag the door open.

“And furthermore,” Sawatari says.  “How dare that Hiragi Yuzu act so full of herself and nose her way into my duel!  I’ll bet if I had faced Yuya without his Pendulums, I would have won. I—”

Sawatari is the first one through the door, and his words stumble to a stop in his throat.  There’s a movement in the wake of the opening door, a figure leaping up to their feet and shying back from the flood of light.  It looks kind of life....

“Hiragi Yuzu?” Sawatari says, spluttering when Kakimoto accidentally runs into him, not expecting him to stop.  “What on earth are you doing here??”

In the dark, the girl’s eyes are the only thing that quite catch the light, and her eyes are wide.  She looks tense, like she’s getting ready to bolt.

“Oh, I get it!” Sawatari says, feeling an irritable spike of anger bubble in his stomach.  “You’ve come to rub it in, haven’t you? Well, don’t act so high and mighty over there for long!  Let’s have another duel right now, I’m sure I’ll beat you this time without your tricks!”

He hears Ootomo yelp, and then there’s a hand slapping down on his shoulder.  Sawatari feels the color drain out of his face as he looks up, and it’s not one of his friends standing there.  In the dark, the tall figure looks practically demonic, his eyes flashing with anger from under dark bangs, his coat torn up and dirtied at the edges in a decidedly-possibly-serial-killer sort of way.

Sawatari lets out a squeak and collapses backwards, out of the figure’s grip.  The tall young man’s lip curls, and he lifts up his duel disk, the blade flickering to light.

“Shun, no!”

The girl throws herself at the boy’s waist, making him stumble.

“He’s just a student, Shun, he doesn’t even know what’s happening, leave him alone!”

“He was cornering you!  What was I supposed to think??”

“Let’s just go, Shun, go, go, go.”

She shoves on his side and reluctantly, with another glare at Sawatari, he goes.  The pair flee out into the harbor, and Sawatari can only sit there on the floor, his mouth hanging open and fumbling for words.

“Was...” he finally gets out.  “Was that Hiragi Yuzu?”

* * *

Ruri’s heart hammers in her chest and she feels like she’s choking.  That was...terrifying. Shun never came through the doors like that, it was too noisy.  He always slipped in through a window. But when she’d heard the door fling open, and the voices...and then Shun had almost...

She almost flinches when Shun slips his arm over her shoulders, pulling her gently against his side.

“You’re okay,” he says softly.  “You’re okay.”

“You were going to card him.”

Shun’s hand tightens on her shoulder.

“He was cornering you.  You looked like you were going pass out.  I thought he was attacking you.”

Ruri pushes his hand off of her shoulder and turns around to face forward towards him.

“Dammit, Shun, take a moment to look at what’s happening once in a while!” Ruri says.  “Don’t just react by instinct!”

“What was I supposed to do??  Wait and watch him attack you?” Shun says, his face getting red.

“You could take a breath to analyze a situation for once in your life!” Ruri says.

She knows she’s getting too heated, too wild, and she needs to reign it in, but she can’t.  She keeps seeing that boy’s startled face, the boy that wasn’t Yuto and yet looked so much like him.  There are tears blurring her eyes and all she wants to do is pummel her brother in the chest until he starts acting like a reasonable human being.

“Even a second can mean life or death, Ruri!  Waiting could have meant losing you!”

“You almost carded an innocent person for being in the wrong place at the wrong time!  If we do that, we’re no better than _them_!”

Shun grabs her hard by the shoulders, squeezing and shaking her enough to rattle her, his face getting close enough to feel spittle against her nose.

 _“I will not lose you, too!”_ he practically shouts into her face.

Ruri can’t breathe.  She can’t think. The tears blurring her eyes finally spill over, bubbling down her cheeks.  She slumps in Shun’s grip, and after a beat, the redness in his face recedes, and he grabs her in a hug.  Ruri just presses her face into his shoulder and cries.

She cries until she has nothing left, and then she just stands there, letting him hold her up.

“I thought I saw him today,” she mumbles into his shoulder.  “I saw someone that looked just like him. Looked just like Yuto.”

Shun’s grip on her stiffens a bit.  She can tell he wants to say something, but he can’t quite make it come out.  She grabs at the sides of his jacket and buries her face against his chest.

“I will not give up on him,” she says.  “You can’t make me.”

Shun’s arms slide tighter around her.

“I’m not going to try,” he says.  It sounds like a lie. But she accepts it.

After a few more beats, he finally lets go of her, and she lets go of him.  She cleans away her tears with the heels of her hands.

“Sorry,” she says, then, haltingly.  “We needed to trade off what we learned.”

“Right,” he says, though he doesn’t look like he’s in the mood for it.  “Well, I checked out those warehouses. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just a bunch of Standard tech.”

“I suppose if Akaba Reiji is looking to prepare an invasion, he’d keep everything closer to home,” she says, sighing.  “I guess the only place left to investigate is LDS itself.”

She bites her lip, nervousness skittering through her.  Getting into LDS itself will threaten her cover, but she’s the best option to start poking around.  She’s already inside, after all. Shun won’t get through the security like she can.

“I don’t like it,” Shun says.

Ruri chances a wry smile.

“I don’t think we have the space to do what we like, anymore.”


	15. Y U U R I / Y U Z U

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey sorry everyone for the late update, the last couple of days have been rough ones mentally and i didn't realize i didn't have a chapter ready for monday until it rolled around, and yesterday ended up not being a good day to write >< thanks for your patience y'all <3

**I believe**

**we both need to go**

**we need to move past**

 

I believe

      your limits are

   going to break soon

* * *

He hears the alarm bell ringing like background noise, distant and far away and barely noticeable.  His heart is pounding in his ears too loudly for him to hear it any clearer.

He scrambles over the body he’s left on the floor and bolts into the hallway.  Whispering vines caress and whisper softly at the edges of his mind and he pushes them away for now.  He doesn’t have time to chat.

The stolen uniform coat flaps unnaturally against his waist.  It’s too big for him, but hopefully, if he keeps his head down, it will at least make people’s eyes skip over him.

The hallway turns, and when he sees the students milling about, looking nervous at the alarm bell, he stops running.  Head down, move quickly, like you have somewhere to be, but you’re not fleeing. 

He’s lucky.  No one looks at him.  He hears the whispers of  _ what does that alarm mean _ and  _ are we supposed to gather somewhere? _  No one here is high enough ranked to know what the alarm is for.  Good.

He reaches the end of the hall and lets out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.  

“Hey, you look like you know where you’re going, do you know what the alarm is for?”

He nearly panics right then.  He flinches when the hand touches his shoulder, too visibly.  When he looks at the young girl in the yellow uniform, her eyes narrow suspiciously.

“I don’t recognize you,” she says.

The alarm turns into an intercom.

_ “Attention all students.  There is an enemy combatant who has infiltrated our school.  If you should see someone you don’t recognize in an Osiris uniform, contact Obelisk Force immediately.  Do not engage the suspect, repeat, do not engage.” _

The girl’s eyes flicker to the red jacket on his shoulders, the jacket that is too big and doesn’t fit and is clearly not his.  He almost laughs out loud from the ridiculousness of it all. So he’s an enemy combatant who infiltrated the school? Why the hell would you infiltrate a prison?

The girl is already hitting her Duel Disk to contact Obelisk Force and Yuuri is already spinning on his heel and bolting.

The whole hall echoes with the alarm, now, rattling his brain in his head and turning his throat dry.  Two more halls. He just has to make it down two more halls. It took him weeks to find and memorize where his only hope of escape was, weeks of stalling along on his daily excursion of being hauled to and from the lab to figure out which door was correct, and this was his only chance.

He rounds another hallway, and at the other end he sees the glint of the metal masks worn by the Obelisk Force.  One of the trio points. He has to run towards them, the door is in the middle of the hall and he can’t go another way around, he’ll get lost.

Yuuri inhales sharply and flees forward.  The movement is enough to startle the trio of Obelisk Force— they hadn’t expected him to come towards them, and it gives them pause.  It’s enough for Yuuri to cover most of the ground, but then they recover, and one of them is turning on their Duel Disk and the other two are running forward.

Yuuri is faster.  He slams his whole body into the door and nearly bounces off, but he has the presence of mind to slap the stolen card key against the door and it opens, letting him tumble through it.  He hits the ground face first, and rolls immediately to his back, using his foot to kick the door shut again.

He’s lucky.  The room is empty of people.  It takes him a precious second to get the air back in his lungs and roll up onto his knees.

The room glows faintly from one of the large glass pillars in the middle of the room.  There are four of them, but only one is lit up. This is a transport hub; Academia only has one, now that Duel Disks have a teleport function loaded into them, and any student can teleport at any time— granted, only if their restrictions are turned off, which they aren’t until they’re approved for the battlefield.  His first escape attempt by stealing one of his guards Duel Disks proved that point to him.

Double lucky.  There’s actually a Duel Disk left on one of the counters.  He snatches it up and flings it onto his arm, locking it around his wrist.  There’s a lock on it, but that doesn’t matter. He shoves his cards into the deck loader and his monsters eat the lock code from the inside, opening the Disk.  Unfortunately, there’s a wireless teleport restriction on the program that his monsters can’t dispose of. Luckily, he’s still in the teleport hub.

He hears the door slam as someone rams into it, but it looks like there’s no one with a key yet.  He has a few seconds. Yuuri’s eyes scan the screens and readouts— this is the most dangerous part.  He doesn’t know how to work the teleport hub. All he gleans from a brief look is that only one of the four pillars is currently online, and it seems like all he has to do is slip into it and it will automatically transport him, but he doesn’t know where.

The door clicks and shudders and he knows that someone’s got a key. 

It doesn’t matter where.  As long as it isn’t here.

Yuuri bolts for the pillar of light and shoves up against the glass— only, it isn’t glass, not the way he thought it was, it’s like a clear membrane that he’s able to push through and pop out inside.

He hears the door slam open, but that’s the last thing he hears before the light overtakes him like soda fizz and he is gone.

* * *

Yuzu spreads all of her cards out in front of her on the cafe table, and steeples her fingers to look them over.  She hasn’t really had a chance to actually take stock of what she has, and she wants to know what she has available to her.  Which of her cards have turned into Pendulums, which brand new cards have appeared out of nowhere, how they work, and what she can do with them.

Yuya and Sora didn’t come to school today, either.  They’re both busy getting their last qualifying duels for the Maiami Championship, and Yuya’s been being a bit secretive about things, too.  She wants to press, but she still feels terrible about keeping the Pendulum secret, so she doesn’t want to push him. He’ll talk when he’s ready.

For the time being, she has her own plans to make for the Championship.  She bites her lip and picks up one of the cards, looking it over.

“And now you’re just sitting around like nothing happened, huh?  What happened to your new friend?”

It’s not a voice that Yuzu was expecting to hear, and she looks up, blinking.

Sawatari is glaring at her from the other side of the cafe fence, arms folded.  He looks kind of silly, actually. He can’t make an actually stern face to save his life, he just looks childish.  Yuzu frowns at him.

“What do you want?” she says.

“It wasn’t enough that you had to humiliate me in the duel, was it?  And then you had to go snooping around and try to frighten me,” Sawatari says, waggling his finger at her.

“I literally have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Ah, playing dumb, too?  Well you can tell your tall friend that he doesn’t scare me!”

“Are...are you talking about Gongenzaka?  Wait, have you even actually met Gongenzaka?”

Yuzu is dumbfounded.  Sawatari seems to have the certainty of a madman, and she has no idea what he’s talking about.

“Don’t play stupid!  You and that friend of yours were snooping around at the harbor and you threatened me!”

“I haven’t been to the harbor in weeks, Sawatari.  You must be mixing me up with someone else.”

“I should think not!  You have a very distinctive face, you know!”

Yuzu rolls her eyes.  She doesn’t have the time or energy for this.  She really should have just stayed home to do this.  She starts to gather up her cards again.

“Ah.  So those are the Pendulum cards you have.”

That voice isn’t Sawatari’s.  It’s a much calmer voice, quiet, almost out of her hearing.  She looks up.

Sawatari is staring open mouthed at the young man who’s walked up beside him.  She doesn’t recognize him, but he’s taller than her and maybe a little older, with an angled face and neatly trimmed gray hair peeking out from under his hood.  Intelligent violet eyes glitter down at her cards through red-rimmed glasses.

Yuzu frowns at him.

“I’m sorry,” she says, putting her hands over her cards and shuffling them back together out of sight.  “But I don’t believe we’ve met.”

The young man reaches up to fix his glasses.

“Apologies.  I didn’t introduce myself.”

He doesn’t go about introducing himself at all, though, his eyes instead moving up to her face, studying it with a faint curiosity.  Yuzu is starting to feel very uncomfortable.

“Hiragi Yuzu of You Show, isn’t it?” he says.

“Again, I don’t think we’ve met.”

He extends a pale hand across the fence towards her.

“Akaba.  Akaba Reiji.  LDS.”

Oh—  _ what? _

Now she knows why Sawatari is staring at him like a fish, and she nearly lets her mouth drop open too.  Akaba Reiji, the world’s youngest pro duelist, the CEO of LDS Corporation who revolutionized dueling by introducing the new summoning techniques of Fusion, Synchro, and XYZ to his global duel school franchise.

It’s only a fierce pride in her own tiny school that gets her to compose herself quickly, standing up and accepting the handshake as firmly as she can.  Reiji’s eyes flicker with something that might have been respect as he withdraws his hand.

“Was there something you wanted?” Yuzu asks, refusing to be cowed.

“I suppose I was merely curious,” Reiji says, fixing his glasses again.

“About what?  Me?”

She makes it a joke, laughing a bit at the end of her sentence, but Reiji’s face doesn’t change, as though that was  _ exactly _ what he was curious about.

“About Pendulum Summoning, mostly,” Reiji says.  “It’s quite the technique. And it seems to be inherent to your school.”

“Trade secrets,” Yuzu says.  “For now, at least.”

Reiji lets out a very faint chuckle, which sounds more polite than anything.

“But of course.”

He studies her for a moment longer.

“I actually was hoping to meet the rest of You Show, but seeing you on my way there, I thought I would stop by.  I had a proposition I’d like to make to the head of your school.”

“That would be my father. Hiragi Shuzo.”

Reiji nods, as though he already knew this.  Considering what company he’s from, he probably did.

“Perhaps I’ll pay him a call now, then.  Would he be in?”

“Probably?  I can give you his card and you can call.”

She digs it out of her skirt pocket and hands it to him.  He takes it lightly between two fingers, and it disappears into the pocket of his hoodie.

“It was a pleasure,” Reiji says.  “But I won’t keep you any longer.”

“Pleasure meeting you, too,” Yuzu says.

Reiji’s eyes linger on her for just a moment longer than she thinks is necessary, as though he’s looking for something.  But what could he be looking for? Then he inclines his head to her and turns away, continuing on down the sidewalk. Yuzu watches him go.  That was very weird, actually, now that she thinks about it. Couldn’t a businessman like him just...look up You Show’s number and call, instead of going about it like this?

Sawatari is still staring open-mouthed in shock where Reiji disappears, and Yuzu thinks it’s probably as good a time as any to ditch him.  She tucks her cards away, slings her bag over her shoulder, and trots off.


	16. Y U Z U / Y U Y A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhh gosh huge apology for friday......I didn't post and i didn't make any announcements, either >< it was a weird couple of days, but I'll work harder to make sure i meet my update days from now on, thanks y'all for your patience as always <3

**Tomorrow, whatever conflicts we face**

 

**can we have a happy ending just this once?**

* * *

“You agreed to  _ what _ ?”

“Yuzu, you’re acting like I sold the school.”

She feels like he might as well have.  Yuzu puts a hand to her forehead to try and steady herself.  She’s looking over the paperwork that her father was going over now, and it’s so full of legalese that she feels dizzy.  Thank god he hadn’t signed anything yet, just made a verbal agreement. She needs a solid three or four days to go over this and make sure they’re not getting screwed over.

“Yuzu, I know you think I could always do better with the school, and you’re right,” her father says, wincing apologetically.  “But this isn’t your papa’s first rodeo. I know what a partnership is, and I know how to do paperwork.”

“What if Akaba Reiji snuck some clause in here about taking over our school?”

“Yuzu, really,” Shuzo says, actually laughing.  “Our school is great, but I don’t think LDS wants it.”

“No, but they want Pendulums.  That’s why Akaba did this, right?”

She flops into the chair on the other side of his desk and rests her elbows on the counter, her forehead against her hands as she pores over the documents.

“We didn’t confirm anything officially yet, so please calm down, Yuzu,” Shuzo says.  “Right now, Akaba-san is just interested in a mutual partnership. That benefits both of us, Yuzu; Akaba-san gets to learn about Pendulum Summoning, and we get the curriculum for the other summoning types.  No other schools outside of LDS have that right now. That’s a big deal.”

“I know that, but...”

She bites her lip.  She still remembers the intensity of Akaba Reiji’s eyes, the firm grasp on her hand, the spark of a deeper meaning behind his polite words.  She’s not sure she trusts him. There’s much more to the reclusive CEO that first appears, and she doesn’t want to lose her school to whatever secrets he’s hiding, whatever plans he’s making.  This school is far too important to her for that.

Her father puts a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Listen,” he says.  “I didn’t sign anything yet, and Akaba-san didn’t push.  We’re going to have some more official meetings after the tournament is over.  For now, all that’s going to happen is we’re going to have a couple of his students over, just to see the school and to trade some curriculum.  So please, try to play nice with them for now, okay?”

Yuzu presses her lips together.

It’s not that she fears Pendulum summoning will be taken away.  Yuya is doing great now that he’s working on his qualifications for the tournament.  After their talk, she can see the excited spark in his eyes again. Even if the whole world has Pendulum summoning, he’ll still be lauded as the pioneer, and he’s working hard to further his own power to stay ahead of everyone else.  She doesn’t know exactly what he and Sora are doing every time Yuya scoops up the younger boy and disappears with him, but they both seem to be having fun, and Yuya took Yuzu’s Pendulums in stride well enough.

That’s not what she’s afraid of.  She’s not sure what she’s actually afraid of, to be positive.

She forces a smile to her anxious looking father.  It’s not that she doesn’t trust him to take care of the school, he just gets overzealous sometimes, and needs someone to reign him in.  But maybe this isn’t the worst idea after all. She just needs some time to get used to it— a prospective partnership between You Show and LDS.

_ Akaba Reiji, whatever your plans are, I won’t let you have my school _ , she said.   _ We go out there on equal footing, or we won’t go out at all. _

_ And I’ll make sure of that. _

* * *

“That’s your  _ fifth _ win in a row,” Yuya says, laughing as he claps Sora on the back.  “You’re incredible!”

He might be imagining it, but he thinks he might catch the faintest glimpse of a blush on Sora’s cheeks?  But it’s gone just as quickly, and the tiny boy just smiles around his lollipop.

“Of course I am,” he says, preening.  “Beating six people in a row is no problem.  But more importantly, were you watching my Fusion Summons?”

Absolutely he had been.  Over Sora’s qualification duels, he’d been watching as carefully as he could, trying to make sense of the new summon.  This is his big break to do something important, something that goes beyond Pendulum itself. Something to keep him relevant even though he’s not the only one with Pendulums, something that will wow and amaze the crowd, and something that will let him stand next to Yuzu instead of behind her.  He almost laughs. She’ll be so surprised when she sees him finally pull it off.

“Yup!  I think I know how to do it now, for sure!”

Sora chuckles. 

“You can say that after you actually pull it off,” he says.  “You don’t have a qualification duel today, do you? We can go practice.”

“Nah, my third one is tomorrow, and the last one is the day after that, so I have time!  Maybe I can get Fusion summoning to work in my next duel.”

“Should I tell Yuzu-chan to come watch, then?” Sora says, sending him a smirk.

“What’s that supposed to mean?  And what’s that look for?”

“No~thing.  Anyway, let’s go back to the harbor.  It’s quiet there.”

They make their way through the city to the harbor.  Sora sneaks his hand into Yuya’s bag to steal one of the pancake sandwiches he brought today.  Yuya playfully smacks his hand and reminds him that those are for later, and Sora responds that he needs the sugar to be at maximum teaching capacity.  He produces a bag of fundip out of some hidden pocket in his jacket and proceeds to dip the pancake sandwich into it.

“Have you ever heard of cavities, Sora?”

“I have immortal teeth.  Now don’t sass your  _ shishou. _ ”

He pops the last of the sandwich between his lips as they reach the harbor, skipping over to a place in between a couple stacks of crates.

“Got the Polymerization I gave you in your deck?” he asks.

“Yup!”

“Fusion monster is in your Extra Deck this time?”

“That was  _ one time _ .”

“Is it?”

“Yes,  _ shishou.” _

“Hey, what did I say about sass?” Sora says, shooting him a grin. 

Yuya crosses his eyes back at him and Sora actually laughs a little, looking as though he’s surprised that he is.

“Okay,” he says.  “Just put ‘em on top of your deck to practice, I’m not gonna call you out for stacking—”

He freezes, and the jovial expression on his face disappears.  Yuya blinks, his own smile slipping.

“What—”

Sora shoots forward, past Yuya, ruffling his hair with the breeze of his passing.  By the time Yuya whips around, Sora’s activated his duel disk and there’s a flash and spark of light as two duel disks clash briefly together.  Then Sora leaps backwards, flips, and lands on his feet, skidding.

It’s all happened so quickly that Yuya’s heart only picks up now.  For just a second, he thinks it’s over, and he tries to squint at the person across from them, the one that Sora just clashed with.

“Are you following us?” Sora asks.  “You’re not from around here, are you?”

“Neither are you,” the girl says fiercely, and all at once, Yuya’s vision swims.

“Yuzu?” he says.

No, it’s not Yuzu, it’s that girl again, the one that had appeared at the cafe a day ago; her hair is much longer and darker, though her face and eyes are the same.  It’s so strikingly similar that Yuya feels dizzy.

And then there’s another blur of motion and Yuya gasps, something big slamming into his shoulder and spinning him around.  He goes butt first onto the ground, so hard that it knocks the wind out of him for a moment, and his duel disk hits the ground beside him and the cards go flying out of it.  His heart leaps with nerves; it’s windy on the harbor, what if he loses his monsters in the sea??

Yuya hurriedly spins around to grab up his cards, and once he’s sure he has all of them, he leaps back to his feet.

Sora is waiting warily, watching the two figures.  The one that hit Yuya is much taller than the both of them, his face covered with a pair of sunglasses and a red bandana, and he looks kind of scary, if Yuya is honest.

“H-hey!” he says, trying to get their attention.  What is this, a Western shoot off? “Hey, what’s happening?”

The taller figure flinches, and his face turns towards Yuya.

“Yuto?” he says, his voice awed.  He tugs off his sunglasses, revealing sharp hazel eyes, and tries to move forward.

The girl grabs his arm, looking pained.

“It’s not him,” she says.  “It’s not Yuto.”

Yuya’s mouth opens.  He’s not sure what he should, or could say.  Who are these people and why is Sora looking at them with such intensity?

There’s a card at the girl’s feet, Yuya suddenly realizes.  When his gaze flickers down to it, hers does too. She flinches back as though she’s been burned, and the other man’s eyes shoot to her, moving to touch her shoulder.

“Are you learning how to use that?” she asks, her voice sounding dead.

Yuya almost can’t see what the card is, but after a moment, he realizes it’s Polymerization.

“Yes,” he says, wary.  “Why?”

The girl looks like she’s going to cry.

“There’s no way you could be him,” she says.

And then, suddenly, Yuya’s bracelet is getting hot against his wrist, and the girl’s eyes widen as a light overtakes her form, spreading from her through the man’s arm on her shoulder, and suddenly both of them are gone.

Yuya and Sora both stare at the space where they’ve been, eyes wide.

“Yuya?  Hey, Yuya!  Sora! Are you two numbskulls over here?  We need you back at school!”

Yuzu rounds the corner, her pigtails bouncing— it’s definitely Yuzu, this time, the pendulum glittering around her neck.

She stops short at the look that both Yuya and Sora are giving her.

“What?” she says.  “What are you looking at me like that for?”

Yuya looks down at his bracelet, but it’s gone cold and silent.


	17. Y U Z U / M A S U M I

Make it

      Make it

            Make your own self

 

I’m stepping ahead and

casting you off

* * *

“Man what a dump.  I can’t believe this is a real school.”

Yuzu bites back the angry retort she wants to make, but, for her father’s sake, she puts on the blandest customer service smile she possibly can.  She’s not even in sight, yet, she needs like two more seconds to get her composure up before she deals with these obnoxious, elitist LDS students.

Yuya picks up the slack.  He gives her a bright smile and squeezes her elbow lightly, and then bounces out of the hall and into the lobby.

“Welcome to You Show!” she can hear him saying with an almost excessive cheeriness.  “I’m Sakaki Yuya, it’s nice to meet you!”

“Oh, we know you,” someone else says, a girl’s voice she thinks. 

She can almost imagine Yuya sweeping a bow as he laughs lightly.

“Glad to know my reputation precedes me!  I’m glad you could make it; our principal should be out in a few moments.  He’s just finishing up some pre-testing of some of our equipment!”

Yuya already seems to have the whole performance under control.  Yuzu wished she was as good at acting as he was. Thinking about going out there and playing nice just made her feel gross.  But she sighed, and she turned around the corner.

“I heard you guys are top students from the three LDS courses! That’s really impressive,” Yuya is saying as she steps out into the little lobby.

There are three of them seated on the couch, she notes.  Akaba Reiji does not seem to have accompanied them. All of them appear about her and Yuya’s age, with varying degrees of elitist expressions.  The dark-haired girl in the middle has her arms folded, and instead of paying attention to Yuya, she’s looking around the room as though she’s appraising it.  The boy beside her has his arms thrown behind the couch, leaning back so that the light glitters over the starry circlet he’s wearing. On the other side, a boy with a kendo stick over one shoulder seems to be the only one actually paying attention to Yuya.

The girl’s wandering eyes fall on Yuzu as she walks in, and Yuzu starts to put on her customer service smile.

“Ruri-chan!” the girl says with surprise, leaping to her feet.  “What are you doing here? Is this where you’ve been for the past couple of days?”

Yuzu is so taken aback that instead of smiling, her mouth drops open, and she stares back at the girl like a fish for a moment.  Yuya’s performer’s smile immediately slips off, and his eyes widen. The other two boys lean forward towards Yuzu with the same surprise as the girl.

“Where have you been?  You’ve been skipping classes all this time, and you show up for this?  Did Akaba ask you to come, too?” the boy with the bushy hair asks.

Yuzu opens and closes her mouth several times, completely at a loss for how to respond.

“I’m sorry,” she finally says.  “I think you have me mixed up with someone else.”

All three of them look entirely unconvinced, exchanging a glance between the three of them.

“I’m Hiragi Yuzu, I’m the daughter of the principal here,” she said.  “Sorry, I guess I have a familiar face...”

The purple haired boy is squinting at her now, as though trying to make sense of her features, and she squirms nervously.  She doesn’t like how she’s suddenly become the center of attention for everyone.

“Are you sure?” the girl says, looking actually really disconcerted, her brow furrowed, and lips parted.  “You really look  _ just _ like her...”

“Is... ‘Ruri-chan’ a friend of yours?” Yuya asks.  “Is she missing?”

The girl glares at him briefly, but Yuzu notes the nerves in Yuya’s voice.  She shoots him a look, but he’s looking at the other three, waiting with a faint tremor for an answer.  What...? Why is Yuya looking so concerned.

“She’s in the XYZ course with me,” the purple haired boy says, jabbing a thumb towards himself.  “But she hasn’t been around in a few days and we haven’t heard from her.”

“Guess we just got mixed up after worrying about it,” the bushy haired boy says.  “Sorry bout that!”

But Yuya doesn’t look soothed, in fact, he looks  _ nervous _ .  What’s wrong with him?  Yuzu has a right to be thrown off guard by being mistaken for someone else, but why would Yuya be so thrown off balance by it, too?

“Sorry,” the girl says finally, looking down.  “I’m Kotsu Masumi. Fusion Course.”

Yuzu bows slightly towards in response to Masumi’s inclined head.

“Shijima Hokuto, XYZ Course,” the purple haired boy says, throwing up a hand in greeting.

“Todo Yaiba, Synchro Course,” the bushy haired boy with the kendo sword says.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Yuzu says.  “We already introduced ourselves...but I guess you could call us the Pendulum Course.”

She means it sort of as a joke, but she does note the spark of interest in all three of their gazes when she says that.

“So it’s true?  Everyone at this school learns Pendulum Summoning?” Masumi says.

“Well, it’s still in its early stages, so not everyone yet,” Yuzu says.  “Yuya is the pioneer here.”

She tugs on his arm to move him in front of her a bit, trying to nudge him back into his performer persona.  He looks shaken, and she wants to help him calm down and remind him that there’s work to be done.

It takes him a second to come back to himself, but he smiles, and inclines his head.

“Let me tell you, it’s actually just as surprising to me as it is to you,” he says in a joking tone.  “Well, while we’re waiting for the principal, why don’t I show you around the school? I think the kids are practicing with Gongenzaka today, so you can have a look at our field!”

He takes the lead, to Yuzu’s relief.  The LDS students lift off the couch and start after Yuya down the hall.  Yuzu hangs back and smiles, so that she can follow behind.

Masumi hesitates as she passes her, eyes flickering over Yuzu’s face and narrowing with confusion again.

“You really do look just like her,” she says.  “It’s kind of eerie.”

Yuzu doesn’t know how to respond to that, and after a beat, Masumi is walking towards the others again.  Yuzu waits for just another moment before she follows, too.

_ Ruri _ , she thinks, turning the name over in her head.   _ Who is she, anyway? _

* * *

This place  _ is _ kind of a dumpy school, not that Masumi is going to say it out loud like Hokuto had.  She folds her arms and looks through the window into the tiny Action Field. It’s nothing at all like LDS’s massive fields, and she can’t imagine not having that much room to maneuver.  The younger kids seem to take to it well enough, though, all three of them currently in a duel with a very large, almost intimidating figure.

“Are they all students here?” she asks.

“The kids are; Gongenzaka is from the Gongenzaka Dojo,” Yuya says.  “He’s a good friend, so he comes around to help out sometimes!”

Schools helping each other out feels like a foreign concept to Masumi, who’s been in LDS since she was old enough to hold a card.  What about keeping school secrets and maintaining rivalries? Still, she supposes she’s here right now to ‘foster a beneficial relationship with a colleague school,’ so maybe that’s the way of the future or something.

The door at the end of the hallway opens up, and she and the other glance in that direction.

“Sorry for the wait!” she hears a very enthusiastic voice boom down the hall.  “Thank you so much for coming!”

This must be the principal, Hiragi Shuzo.  She doesn’t really see his resemblance to Hiragi Yuzu if she’s honest.

What’s more surprising is Akaba Reiji walking out behind him, and Yuzu stops dead in the hallway when she sees him.

“How long have you been here?” she says, and the sentence starts off with an accusing tone before she manages to reign it back in.

“Just as long as they’ve been here,” Reiji says in that quiet, calm voice of his.  “Hiragi-san and I were just discussing more details.”

Yuzu shoots the faintest glare at her father, who doesn’t seem to notice, because he’s busy introducing himself to Hokuto and Yaiba.  Masumi greets him with only half her focus, the other half trained on Yuzu. It’s just... _ weird _ .  She looks exactly like Ruri.  Her hair is different, of course, but other than that, it’s  _ Ruri _ .  Ruri, who’s been missing for several days and apparently hasn’t even called in sick, so no one knows where she is.  Masumi almost wonders if there’s some weird conspiracy going on, and Yuzu actually  _ is _ Ruri, she just disguised herself to infiltrate LDS for a while and now she’s here.

Yuzu seems to notice Masumi’s stare, and meets her gaze steadily.  There’s a fire in the back of her eyes that takes Masumi aback.  _ Lustrous _ is the only way she can describe the calm but ferocious determination in Yuzu’s eyes.  She looks away, quickly. Maybe she’s not Ruri after all. Ruri always had a much calmer shine to her eyes.

The doors to the field open, then, as it seems the kids are done practicing.  The chubby boy stops dead in the doorway and the other two bounce into him, but he’s too busy staring at the LDS students.

“Who are  _ you?” _ he demands.

“Futoshi, we told you that LDS was coming today,” Yuzu says patiently.

“Geez, Futoshi!!  Let us through!” the little girl behind him says, poking him in the back.

He finally gets out of the way, and the big one, Gongenzaka, follows the kids out.  He stares at the LDS students for a moment with an expression that might be a grimace or might be him sizing them up.  Masumi gives him a glare right back. She won’t be intimidated, that’s for sure.

There’s a soft popping sound beside her, and it startles her from her focus so much that she jumps.  When did that short boy with the blue hair get next to her, and why is he popping his lollipop out of his lips so loudly and obnoxiously??

“Looks like everyone’s here, then,” Shuzo says, still bright and excitable, like a child, almost.  “There’s not too much else to show around for now, but if anyone’s interested, we might organize a couple of friendly matches while you’re all here!”

“Not really much of a tour, is there?” Hokuto whispers to Masumi and Masumi rolls her eyes.  It’s not that he’s wrong, she just doesn’t want to agree with him. 

Still, she’s interested in the idea of a duel.  She wants to see these Pendulums for herself. And, if she’s honest, she wants to see Yuzu in action, and put her mind to rest once and for all about her relation to Ruri.

“I think that sounds like an excellent idea,” Reiji says in his usual bland, expressionless tone.  “Shijima-san. Perhaps you would like to go first?”

“Let me start us off for You Show,” Yuya says with a bright smile.  “I want to treat you all to our signature Entertainment Dueling!”

Masumi snorts a bit— this Sakaki Yuya is much siller in person than she expected.  She had thought his exuberance would have been mostly for the camera, but it seems he’s just like that in person.  Hokuto just shrugs and takes it in stride, accepting Reiji’s offer to go first.

Yuya lets Hokuto through the doors first, and Shuzo retreats back to the control room to set up an Action Field.

Masumi folds her arms and tries not to look like she wants to yawn as much as she does.  Hopefully they can get through this silly field trip soon.


	18. M O N T A G E

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as an update: there will be no chapter of d i s p e r s i o n this Friday! I will be at con and I will be too busy/too far from a computer to be able to update. Thank you for everyone's support of this project and I will see you next Monday!

**Your overflowing passion is**

 

**why I loved you**

 

**and why I lost you**

* * *

 

Hokuto makes a show of yawning to act like he’s not as excited as he actually is.  Ever since he saw that live duel between Ishijima and Yuya, he’s been _itching_ to have a look at Pendulums in action.  Not to mention, he has a feeling that Yuya will make the game interesting for him.

He’s entertaining, that’s for sure.  Jumping around the field, using his sword fish monster to hang from a building so he can swing up and try to beat Hokuto to the falling stars that become action cards.  He makes it a fun challenge. But only a challenge. Not something he can’t defeat.

* * *

Yuya had thought that Ishijima was the hardest test of his skills he could ever imagine, but he is shocked to find that Hokuto is giving that duel a run for its money.  More than a run for its money, actually— he is possibly the strongest duelist that Yuya has ever faced.

 _So these are the kind of students that LDS trains?_ he thinks.  If that’s the case, even though he has two of the four qualification duels for the Championship, he’s not sure how long he can last.

Odd-Eyes lets out a huff into his hair, ruffling his bangs, and he reaches back to grip onto its neck, swinging himself up and landing lightly between his horns.  It’s a comfortable place— a nostalgic one, even though Odd-Eyes in his Pendulum form is so much different. He feels safe up here.

“What do you think?” he whispers.  “Can we win?”

Odd-Eyes rumbles deep in its chest, vibrating up through Yuya’s feet, and he imagines the response is something like a _well either way I’ll fight to my last breath_.  Yuya has to laugh a little.  That’s the best answer he can hope for, he thinks, and his dragon’s enthusiasm is somehow contagious, even though it’s only a solid hologram.

Odd-Eyes rumbles with something that feels like frustration when the final attack misses its target, and it shatters under his feet so that he has to hit the ground and roll while his life points hit zero.  He’s lost.

Oh.  Wait.  That didn’t sink in.

He _lost_.

He thinks for a moment that he can feel everyone on the other side of the window staring at him— with disappointment, probably.  Sora, especially, he’s sure. Polymerization is staring at him from his hand, unused. Why didn’t he use it? Why didn’t he at least try?

Is he scared?

What is he scared of?

He looks up towards the windows.  Yuzu’s eyes catch his first. Oh. She looks worried.  He can’t make her worry.

He smiles.  He gives Hokuto a short bow and a thank you, and then slips his goggles over his eyes and hurries from the Action Field before anyone sees him cry.

“Good luck!” he says cheerily to Yuzu before she can grab him, and he excuses himself to the lobby.  Yuzu has the duel next, so she can’t follow him. He can be all by himself, and think about how he messed it all up.

* * *

Hiragi Yuzu has hard, almost angry eyes, as tough as flint and shining as diamonds, and it makes Masumi’s breath catch just a little.  She can’t remember seeing someone with eyes like that, so harsh and determined— and yet, she’s only barely looking at Masumi. Her mind must be on Yuya, who fled after losing to Hokuto.

If she’s distracted, Masumi can certainly make this two for two, she thinks, turning on her duel disk as the shining palace appears as their stage.  Not that she needs the help to win, of course.

* * *

Yuya was crying.  She’s sure of it. But she can’t go after him, not with LDS here, not with Reiji watching them with such a hard-edged curiosity, and she knows, _knows_ in her bones that this is why he’s made this offer to her father.  He’s here to observe. He wants to see Pendulums. He wants to figure out how to use them, and as soon as he has that information, he will betray them, she’s sure of it.

She absolutely cannot lose.  For Yuya, and for her school, she absolutely can’t lose.

She’s thinking too hard about Yuya.  The lance of Masumi’s shining knight catches her in the side and she has to roll to prevent herself from taking actual damage.  She’s going too soft.

The Pendulum cards stare accusingly up at her.   _Yuya’s_.  She’s talked to him about this already.  It should be all right to use them. But Yuya lost, Yuya lost even though he had the one thing he thought would help him soar, and if she uses them to win, will it still hurt him?

Not to mention, if she shows them off for Reiji, will she only speed up his plan to use You Show for his own gain, and leave them?  If LDS has Pendulums, they’ll leave You Show in the dust. The school will lose what little it has. Yuzu will lose everything.

She can’t lose.  She _cannot_ lose.

Her card almost seems to burn her fingers when she draws into the next one, hands shaking.  It’s another Pendulum card. But it’s one she doesn’t remember from when she had her cards spread before her, taking stock of her new deck.  This one is new. It’s new and it burns her fingers and she can feel it, feel it _vibrating_ with a desire to come forth.  Desire? How can a card have a desire?

It thrums.  There’s a melody behind it.  It wants to be summoned.

If she wants to win, if she wants to protect what’s important to her, she has to use what’s at her disposal.

“I set the Pendulum Scales with Scale 1 Adagio, the Melodious Minstrel, and Scale 2 Tempo, the Melodious Minstrel!”

She can’t summon much with that kind of scale, but she has a plan.

“I activate Tempo’s effect!  Once per turn, by discarding one Melodious card in my hand, I can raise its scale to ten!”

Tempo raises its pale purple hands and lets out a furious trill of notes, coming fast and hard like rain.

“I can now Pendulum Summon this— level eight, Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight!”

There’s the strangest rush of familiarity and nostalgia that washes over when the monster swirls onto the field, coming forth from a whirlwind of rose petals.  She is a tall figure, almost as dark as Masumi, with a wide brimmed hat decorated with flowers and feathers tucked into it, wearing a matching pink and blue doublet with puffy sleeves. Her long red hair streams around her with white roses seemingly growing out of it, and when she laughs, it’s a beautiful, rhythmic sound as familiar as she is, like a lullaby from childhood only half-remembered.

“Bloom Bard can attack once for every monster I remove from play in my Graveyard— I have four monsters, so she can attack four times!  Staccato Riposte!”

Bloom Bard draws a long, beautiful rapier from her side, and four roses bloom along the edges of the white metal.  With another trilling cry of excitement, she leaps forward, taking down Masumi’s knight and finishing her off with a wave of sound that echoes from the sword like a bell.

Yuzu’s won.

She looks up into the window, and catches Reiji staring at her.  She stares right back.

 _You won’t overtake us so easily,_ she thinks.   _You won’t take away what’s precious._

* * *

Gongenzaka didn’t want to be the one doing this; he’s not even a You Show student.  But Sora seems to have disappeared, and the kids are too young to have a chance against Todo Yaiba, and there’s no way that Gongenzaka will leave his friends without help if there’s something he can do.

“Go, Gongenzaka!” Yuzu shouts through the window.

“Win, Gongenzaka!!” Ayu and Futoshi chant together.

It’s one and one; there’s nothing riding on this, but Gongenzaka is determined to win, and he tries to project that onto Yaiba.  Yaiba just grins back at him, looking lazy. Gongenzaka snorts— if that’s his attitude, he’ll surely lose.

Yuya is not present, Gongenzaka thinks, as he draws his first cards.  The loss must have hurt. But Yuya needn’t worry— he put on a fine fight and made it quite difficult for his opponent to take the win.

He only hopes he can finish this quickly, with a win, so that Yuya can put his mind at ease and focus on finishing his qualification duels.  There will be another win. He tries to think that thought in Yuya’s direction, over, and over. There will always be another chance to win.

* * *

A win, a loss, and a tie, Reiji thinks.  And only two of the three duelists used Pendulums.

He can feel Hiragi Yuzu’s eyes boring into him, challenging him.  She seems to be a proud girl. He can’t blame her. He is intruding on her home.  He is a threat, someone here to steal what he can from them. He can’t even deny that her suspicions are entirely false.  He needs Pendulums. He needs them or he knows what will be lost— not just the precious things of a beloved school, but the precious lives of an entire world.

He only wishes he had the proof to tell the truth.  He thinks that these students would be great allies if only they would believe him.

He turns to Yuzu, and finds that he is correct.  She is staring at him, daring him to say something, to push his boundaries.  He won’t disappoint her.

“It seems a shame to leave it at a tie,” he says, fixing his glasses.  “Hiragi-san...what would you say to a duel between you and I?”

* * *

To start, Shuzo is absolutely flabbergasted to find that Yuzu has Pendulums of her own.  Why didn’t she say anything? Where did she and Yuya _get_ them from?

And to finish...can Yuzu actually win this duel?

He knows there’s nothing riding on it, but it makes him tense, anyway.  He feels nervous every time Yuzu duels. When she makes a flying leap for an action card on the other side of the circus field, he winces in spite of himself.  Her Bloom Bard catches her like a trapeze artist and helps her swing to the floor, and he lets out the breath he was holding. He hates getting so nervous, and he tries to at least keep it under the surface how much he worries about her when she duels.  Entertainment Dueling is a very active style, and one with a lot of falling. He can’t help but worry, but he doesn’t want to make Yuzu think he doesn’t believe in her own strength, either.

Akaba Reiji moves much less than Yuzu does, but he moves with precision and calculating accuracy.  He’s already summoned three monsters: Fusion, Synchro, XYZ. Yuzu’s Pendulums are tough, but Reiji’s are tougher.  Shuzo can hardly believe he’s mastered all three summoning types— he’s so young, and the summoning types have barely been in the circuits for a year.  He’s a dangerous opponent.

Yuzu’s eyes are on fire with determination.  She doesn’t want to lose.

His hands tighten at his sides.

He only hopes that in her fierce desire to win, she doesn’t lose sight of herself.

* * *

Sora sucks on his lollipop as he wanders into the lobby.  He’s almost a little surprised that Yuya’s only gone this far; with the look on his face, he had been sure Yuya’d be halfway to the harbor by now.

Yuya sits on the couch, hunched over his knees, goggles over his eyes the way he seems to do when he’s frustrated or upset.  He does it a lot when he messes up a fusion— like he thinks it hides his sour face or something.

Sora perches on the couch beside him, popping his lollipop loudly from his lips.  Yuya doesn’t respond.

“Why didn’t you use Polymerization?” he asks, when Yuya doesn’t say anything.

It takes Yuya a few moments to respond.

“I’m not sure,” he says.  “I think...I think I got scared a little.”

“Scared?  Of what?”

“I don’t know.”

Sora raises an eyebrow.  He’s trying to think of how to say this.  Say too much, and he’ll blow his cover— but he wants to impress on Yuya that there’s no time or space to be scared during a duel.  Or maybe he shouldn’t. He might be Yuya’s teacher right now, but Yuya is also, technically, an enemy combatant, and he’s already running the risk of giving him Fusion.  Making the enemy stronger.

He opens his mouth, but Yuya speaks first.

“I have to get stronger,” he says.  “This loss hurt but...I’ll use that.  I’ll make sure I win next time.”

Sora’s words wither in his throat.

“You’ll...use the loss?”

Yuya pushes his goggles off of his eyes, and the red marks left around them make him look silly.  But he has a determined look.

“I’ll push through and use this frustration to get stronger,” he says.

Use the loss?  Sora’s never thought of that— a loss means the end.  It means the end of _everything_.  

He considers Yuya for a moment, the determination shining in his eyes, and he wonders.  Can you actually come back from a loss?

“Sora, will you help me practice more?”

His eyes are so fiery.  Sora’s never seen such determination before— he’s only seen the dead, furious eyes of people desperate not to lose. He’s never seen someone look like this before.

It’s...it’s startling.

He realizes that he’s been staring, and Yuya is waiting for a response.  He smiles.

“Of course,” he says.  He wants to see what happens if Yuya actually can come back.  He wants to see him come back from losing, and see what happens if he does.

The door opens, then, and Sora looks up over his lollipop.  Akaba Reiji and his three little ducklings are hurrying out of the room.  Reiji doesn’t even give Yuya or Sora a glance— his eyes are on something else entirely.  What’s gotten his feathers all ruffled?

They’re gone faster than Sora has time to consider it, and he stares at the door as it swings close.  Yuya stares too, his mouth hanging open.

He leaps to his feet first when the doors to the duel field hallway open again, and Yuzu and Shuzo appear with the kids behind them.

“What happened?” Yuya says.  “Why’d they leave so fast?”

“Something about an emergency at LDS?” Shuzo says. “I’m not really sure.  He had to leave right in the middle of the duel.”

“He was dueling?” Sora says, surprised.  “Against who?”

Shuzo’s eyes flicker to Yuzu, and Sora stares at her.  Yuzu isn’t looking at anyone. She looks a little red-faced, from exertion or irritation, he can’t tell.

“Yuzu?” Yuya asks, his voice soft and uncertain.

Yuzu swallows tightly.

“Akaba Reiji has Pendulums,” she says.


	19. R U R I / R E I J I

**I haven’t forgotten**

**the incomplete me of**

**yesterday**

 

the feeling that’s about to implode

      the fragments of who i used to

            be

don’t tell me no

 

**but I have to**

**we’re the only ones**

* * *

Ruri licks her lips, pressing hard into the wall.  It’s dark. The silence presses in on her with such force that it’s hard to breathe.  Her breaths are too loud, they seem to echo against the long, empty hallways to her frazzled senses.

But they’re close.  They’re very close.

Shun looks up from where he’s tucked behind a plant a little way up the hall.  He nods. The office is empty according to the scan he just made. She swallows.  This is it.

As one, the two of them peel themselves off the walls, hurrying towards the door.  Ruri points her Duel Disk towards the nearest camera to jam it with a brief glitch for a moment, sending a mental thank you to Sayaka for updating her disk.

Shun, meanwhile, takes on the office lock, using one of Ruri’s hairpins to jiggle it open. He holds it open for her, and she slips on through, Shun on her heels.

The door closes slowly behind them, and they’re inside.

Akaba Reiji’s office is enormous.  You could almost fit Ruri’s house in here.  The whole far wall is a giant sheet of glass windows, and the stars glitter down, making it feel like they’re inside an observatory.  There’s only a single desk in the middle of the room, closer to the windows, and an empty chair facing the opposite direction. A computer sits on the desk.  That’s their best bet.

Ruri goes forward first.  Sayaka’s upgrades to her Duel Disk after they stole the Academia disk are pretty top notch, and Ruri’s sure her disk will be able to hack into the computer, to find out what Akaba Reiji’s role in the invasion is, and hopefully find out what happened to Yuto.

The chair is empty when she reaches the desk, and she wonders why it’s facing the other direction.  The computer isn’t on, but she fixes that in a moment. While it boots up, she pulls out the little cord to plug into the hard-drive. Shun twitches nervously, looking up at the windows and around the room.

“There are probably cameras in here, too,” Shun says.

“There probably are, but we’ve gotten this far— we can’t back down now.”

Ruri plugs in as the screen turns on.  Her Duel Disk hums, and she starts to run Sayaka’s program.  She searches for Academia first.

It takes a few breaths, as the program carefully starts to poke its way around the computer, slipping into locks and pulling open doors, searching for files.

And then the Disk goes positively wild.

Ruri almost flinches at the sudden explosion of files opening on the screen, the windows popping up and the document names scrolling across in a whirlwind.  Graphs and readouts and maps appear, technological blueprints—

Ruri grabs for the first file she sees before she can get more overwhelmed.

_[Defense Biome Project 3.2] Left testing stage and is approved for city-wide usage.  Systems are implemented and online for activation._

_[Defense Biome: Defense Procedures 3.4] Algorithm refined to work automatically in event of Academia invasion._

What’s this all about?  Ruri clicks on another file.

_Energy Monitor Log 4-11-73_

_Natural Fusion energy recorded at coordinates 8-A-X and 23-S-T.  Cross-referencing with active duels in those areas requested. Academia activity suspected but cannot be confirmed.  Alert raised to Yellow 2._

_Log 4-12-73_

_Natural Fusion energy recorded at coordinate 62-F-R.  Cross-referencing active duels has garnered no data. Natural XYZ energy recorded at coordinate 2-A-C.  Cross-referencing requested. Alert raised to Yellow 3._

This isn’t making any sense.  It’s only two files, but so far...it sounds more like Akaba Reiji is preparing to _be_ invaded...not to spearhead one.  She shakes her head. He’s the Professor’s son...of course he must be involved with Academia’s invasion.  She’ll need to look at these downloaded files in more detail later.

She turns towards Shun, mouth open to ask him something, she’s not sure what.

Shun tenses up, noticing before she does.  There’s someone standing in the corner of the room, next to one of the plants on the far wall— tucked out of sight of them from when they would have come through the doors.

A faint light from his cell phone glints over the lenses of his glasses.  Akaba Reiji isn’t even looking at them, he’s looking at his phone. Shun swears, raising up his Duel Disk, and Ruri feels her blood turn to ice.

“Curious,” Reiji says, before either of them can speak.  “You didn’t strike me as the spy type, Kurosaki Ruri, but I suppose there weren’t many other possibilities.”

“Stay back,” Shun snarls, pushing Ruri behind him.

Reiji holds up one hand, showing that he is not wearing a Duel Disk.  He still hasn’t looked up from his phone.

“You’re searching for information about Academia,” Reiji says, in a bland monotone, as though this is the most ordinary conversation they could ever have.  “That’s interesting.”

“Why is that interesting?” Ruri says.

“Because I wonder why Academia wants to know what I know about them.”

For a moment, Ruri’s not sure what he’s talking about.  Then Shun bristles, and Ruri tenses up with indignation.

“You think _we’re_ with Academia??” Shun hisses.

“It seems a tenuous connection, but I can’t imagine why anyone else would be interested in my data.  Unless...”

And finally, Reiji’s eyes lift up towards them, and he doesn’t finish his sentence.  For a brief moment, they only stare at each other. Reiji seems to be staring right through them, and Ruri feels cold.  She had never expected to come face to face with him, never expected to get caught like this— is this a trap? Has she not been as careful as she should have been?  For all she knows, this man is in charge of what happened to her home, or at least complicit in it. He isn’t armed, but there could be any number of soldiers in the hallway by now.

“I just want to ask one question of you,” Reiji says, stowing his phone into his pocket.  “Are either of you responsible for this?”

He tugs something out of his other pocket and holds it up.  It’s hard to see it in the dark, from a distance, and Ruri squints.

Then her throat closes up.  Because she knows what that is.  It’s a card— a card with a person’s face twisted up in horror imprinted on the front.

“This was all we found of Professor Marco, a Fusion teacher at my school.  Are you the ones who did this?”

“No!” Ruri says, before Shun can speak.  “We’d never card anyone! We’d— we’d never—”

She chokes on the sudden burst of panic.  She remembers paper raining over her head, imprinted with the faces of her friends, as a man loomed over her with a terrifying grin and a light streaming out of his disk to claim another fallen ally—

She doesn’t realize that she’s had a panic attack until she’s doubled over and Shun is catching her by the shoulder with one hand to support her, the other still protectively up and ready to duel if necessary.

“Stop it!” Shun snarls at Reiji.  “You’re trying to mess with us, and it’s not going to work!  I’ll bet you carded that person yourself!”

Reiji blinks, and his lips part.  He glances at the card in his hand.

“Do you mean to tell me this is actually Marco?”

“Don’t play fucking dumb!”

“I don’t have to play dumb.  I sincerely do not know what this technology is.  I assumed the image was a photograph, or a warning of some kind.”

A faint buzz of agitation edges into his voice.  His fingers are tensing around the card. Ruri is coming out of her panic attack now, dizzy and uncertain.  She bites her lip, staring at Reiji for a long, long moment.

“You really don’t know?” she whispers.

“Clearly, I know less than you.  Which is why I am asking.”

“Ruri, don’t listen to him, he’s lying.  He’s trying to fool us,” Shun said.

Ruri struggles out of her brother’s grip and tries to stand tall, fixing Reiji’s eyes in hers.

“Just tell me one thing,” she whispers.  “Are you Academia?”

Reiji’s entire body tenses up, subtly, but perceptibly.  She sees his lips curl ever so faintly, his eyes harden, knuckles go white.

“No,” he says.  “I would much rather tear it to the ground.”

She has no reason to trust him.  But she wants so badly to believe that he is not her enemy.  That she doesn’t have to fight. That she’s found an ally instead of an opponent.  Shun is still so tense beside her, and she doesn’t blame him. But she needs this. She needs this to be all right.

“Neither are we,” she whispers.  “We’re from XYZ. We’re fleeing their invasion.”

Reiji’s lips part, and his eyes spark.  Then, he lets his arm with the card fall to his side, and fixes his glasses.  He suddenly looks exhausted.

“Follow me,” he says.  “I’ll show you where our base of operations is.”

* * *

The two of them are wary, and he doesn’t blame them.  He’s still a bit wary himself. He knows Ruri uses XYZ, but that means nothing.  Any Fusion soldier could learn it to draw suspicion off themselves. But he needs this.  He needs some kind of break. Something that will tell him what his father has been up to and how to combat him.  Three years he’s been working and he still hasn’t found a way to monitor the other dimensions; he’s only just barely reconstructing the technology that will let him move between them.

And he feels as though he’s running out of time.

He pushes a button to open the doors to his control booth.  It’s late, but there are still people here on the night shift, monitoring energy levels, watching over the city, making sure everything is as it should be.  He’s noted a lot of Fusion and XYZ energy lately, but it’s never been at night. Whoever’s here must need to sleep.

He hears Ruri make a soft gaping sound as she steps inside behind him.

“Now, I know you are Kurosaki Ruri,” Reiji says, glancing back at her.  She’s staring up at all the screens with a wide eyed awe. “Unless, of course, that was a pseudonym to infiltrate my school.”

“No, that’s my name,” Ruri says quietly.

He can’t confirm this, of course, but if she’s from another dimension her real name wouldn’t matter to begin with.

“I don’t know your compatriot, however,” Reiji says, nodding at the young man shooting him a sour expression.

“Kurosaki Shun,” Ruri says for him.  “My brother.”

Reiji glances at her.

“You’re being remarkably open with your information.”

“I’m hoping it will inspire you to be open with yours.”

He can’t help but let his lips twitch a bit at that.  This girl is a smart one, a cunning one. He wasn’t sure who the spy was for several days, at least, until she got desperate and broke into his office.

“What kind of information would you like me to be open with?”

He passes the card with Marco’s face on it off to an aide that trots up to him, along with a series of notes on a pad about tests he wants run on the card.  If the two are telling the truth, and this is actually Marco, he needs to find a way to reverse the effect immediately. This is a weapon he didn’t know his father had, and it worries him.

“Is it true?  Are you the son of the one who’s leading the invasion against my home?”

Reiji’s lips tighten.

“Yes,” he says.

“Then why are you fighting him?” Shun snaps, glaring at him.  “Isn’t he your family?”

Reiji gives him a once over, catching his eyes and taking in his frame.  He’s taller than Reiji, by a bit, and his eyes are hard as flint. There’s a sharp-edged fury to his frame, that looks like it could explode at any moment.  He is a wild card, Reiji decides, and he’s not sure how much he can trust him.

“I’ve never put much stock in family ties,” Reiji says blandly.  “Especially if those ties would induce me to do harm to innocents for no clear reason.”

He turns to his screens at his higher desk overlooking the rest of the room, and clicks a few buttons, bringing up a few readouts.

“I have been spending the past three years attempting to reconstruct my father’s technology and notes to determine what it is he’s up to,” he says.  “I know you have no reason to trust me, but I am not too proud to say I could use your help.”

He glances back to see Ruri staring at the readouts that he’s brought up, eyes narrow, the lights glowing against her eyes.  Shun folds his arms and his lips curl. It seems only one of them is the plan maker here.

“I don’t know enough about what my father is planning,” Reiji says.  “But you know more. You don’t have enough firepower to face him on your own, I assume.  But I do.”

Ruri’s eyes lift up to his.  He holds the gaze for a moment.

“So,” he says.  “What is your answer?”

He looks at Shun, too, and the young man glares at him without backing down.  He’s determined and strong, then; that’s at least something Reiji can rely on.

Shun and Ruri finally exchange a glance.  And then, Ruri slowly nods.

“I’ll take this gamble, Akaba Reiji,” Ruri says quietly.  “I only hope I won’t regret it.”

Reiji feels something in him unknot, but he tries to keep the utter relief from pouring out of him outwardly.

“Thank you,” he says, fixing his glasses.  “I will do everything in my power to make sure we both do not.”


	20. Y U Y A / Y U Z U

******I want to say no**

**I want to say no**

**I want to say no**

      Has anything changed yet?

**No.**

**I wish it had.**

* * *

Yuzu stares off into the distance at nothing, and Yuya peeks around the corner at her, biting his lip.  His fingers tighten against the doorframe.

“Are you sure she’s okay?” he whispers to Tatsuya.

“Not at all,” Tatsuya says, looking worried.

“I think the duel with Akaba-san scared her,” Ayu says.

Yuya frowns, looking back up to where Yuzu is sitting on the couch, staring at nothing with her hands in her lap.  She could almost be sleeping sitting up, but her eyes are open.

He curses mentally at himself.  Why hadn’t he stayed to watch everyone else’s duels?  He’d gotten so worked up with his own emotions, that he’d just disappeared and left them.  He didn’t see Yuzu’s duel with Akaba Reiji, and he doesn’t exactly know what had happened...only that Reiji had had his own Pendulum cards.  Still, however it had gone....Yuzu seems pretty down about it.

Yuya inhales.  Then he pops around the corner, and before Yuzu can stir and look at him, he jumps onto the couch beside her hard enough to make the cushion on her sit jump up.

Yuzu squeaks, hands fumbling against the couch as she’s jostled up and then back down.

“Yuya!!”

He laughs and ducks under the swing of her fan, plopping down on the seat beside her and then flopping against her shoulder with his own, nearly pushing her over.

“Hey, what’s the big idea?” she says, flushing.

“Nothing,” he says.  “You just looked down, that’s all!”

“I’m fine,” she grumbles, but she won’t quite look at him.  He smiles and slings an arm over her shoulders.

“If you’re not doing anything today, why don’t you come watch my next duel?  Sora should be done with his soon; he said he was going to meet me there..”

Yuzu frowns, and still doesn’t look at him.

“I really should....work on stuff,” she says.

“Oh yeah?  What kinda stuff?”

“Stuff,” she says firmly, pushing his arm off of her gently.  She stands up. Yuya lets his hand fall back into his lap. His smile is starting to slip now.  He can’t even make Yuzu smile even a little...can he really not support her at all?

For a minute, silence stretches between them.  Yuya tries to come up with something to say, and maybe Yuzu is trying too.

“Yuzu-oneechan!  You should go watch Yuya’s duel!”

Yuzu blinks with surprise at Tatsuya’s outburst from the doorway.  He blushes when she looks towards him, but Futoshi picks up the slack.

“Yeah!  If you’re down, Yuzu-oneechan, the best thing to do is watch a really good duel, right?”

Yuzu grimaces slightly, looking down.

“I don’t think watching a duel will be the answer right now...”

“Whatever the answer is, it’s good to take a break, right?” says Ayu.  “You’re always saying that to us!”

Yuzu blows out through her lips, clearly annoyed that her own advice is being turned against her.  But then her eyes flicker down to Yuya, and Yuya sends her a smile.

He smiles bigger when she gives him a small one back.

“Okay,” she says, sighing.  “I’ll come along and watch. Better make it a good one, Yuya.”

“Yay!” Yuya says with the kids, all of them throwing their arms up into the air.  Yuzu rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling. It’s a victory as far as Yuya’s concerned.

* * *

“Got that Polymerization in your deck?”

“Yup!”

“Don’t choke this time, Yuya.  If you have the opening, go for a Fusion.”

Sora points at him with his lollipop, and Yuya salutes.

“Roger, commander!”

Sora’s face twists a bit, as though he’s uncomfortable, but then he rolls his eyes.

“Yeah, yeah,” he says.  “Anyway, don’t get too distracted by your girlfriend watching you, okay?”

“My...huh?”

Sora points with his lollipop into the stands, towards where Yuya’s friends are seated.  They stick out a  _ lot _ among all of the creepy black-robed students of this occult dueling school, it’s almost comical.  Then Yuya’s brain catches up to what Sora’s said, and he flushes.

“She’s not—” he splutters.

“Break a leg,” Sora says, punching him on the shoulder, and then Sora hops off to join the other You Show kids in the stands.  Yuya harumphs, rubbing his shoulder. He turns towards the other side of the field, then, wondering where his opponent is at.

“Oh my!!  So is it you?  Are you Mieru’s fated one?”

The voice comes from right behind Yuya, right at his elbow, and he yelps, jumping two feet into the air and trying to turn around at the same time.  He ends up on his butt, shaking a bit from the impact.

Standing over him is a girl, probably a little younger than him, but not by too much.  She’s round-faced and petite, accentuated by the floof of her dress and her hair, which curls around her pale face.  She holds a shiny crystal apple in her hands.

At his comical fall, her shiny, interested expression curls up a bit.

“You’re awfully clumsy, darling,” the girl says.  “Are you really Mieru’s fated one?”

“Your....what?” Yuya says.

The girl ignores him, looking into her crystal apple and shaking it like it’s a magic eight ball, muttering.

“Well!” she says, putting one hand on her hips.  “I suppose we’ll have to duel, and then I’ll know!”

“Um...okay?”

She huffs while he quickly jumps up to his feet, blushing.

“I’m Sakaki Yuya,” he says.

“Hochun Mieru,” she introduces herself, still somehow looking down at him over her nose even though she’s like a head shorter than him.  “Let’s have an honorable duel.”

“R-right!  Let’s do that!”

Mieru flounces around and clips back to a spot across the field, turning back around to face Yuya.  Yuya inhales once, and then exhales. He glances up at the stands. The kids immediately start waving as big as they can, and Sora sends him a thumb’s up.

Yuzu catches his gaze, and she waves a little.  He waves back, smiling. Okay. If he was going to help Yuzu feel better...he was going to have to put on the performance of his life, today!

* * *

Yuzu is having trouble focusing.  Every time she finds herself with nothing to do, or even times when she does, her mind wanders.  She spent most of school today staring out a window, and her blank notebook for the day seems to be judging her.

But she can’t stop thinking about it.  Can’t stop thinking about  _ him _ .

Akaba Reiji, with the calm yet flashing eyes, the way he barely even flinched even when the Solid Vision grazed him, how he didn’t even blink at the rush of energy that struck down his monsters.  The way he never, ever budged, holding her gaze firmly. And...and then, his Pendulums.

She shivers, trying not to remember how oppressive it had felt— those massive, powerful beings that not one of her Melodious was strong enough to defeat, adding a palpable pressure to the air around her and making it harder to breathe.  Reiji himself had seemed to emit a similar pressure...how did he manage it?

Yuzu grips her wrist with one hand to try and still the faint shake there.  Is...is she really shaking just thinking about it? The duel had no conclusion, her father told her more than once after Reiji and the others had left...but that didn’t matter.  She had known who was about to win. It’s just a game, she reminds herself. It’s not dangerous. It would have been okay to lose— embarrassing, a little, maybe, but it would have been okay to lose.

So why is she so scared?

She grips onto the cold gem of her Pendulum for some support, and tries to at least focus on Yuya’s duel.

“All right!  Come on out, my star of the show, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!”

The air of the cool building almost seems to warm as the dragon pushes its way onto the field, roaring so loud that it shakes the seats.  Yuya leaps from one of the pillars of the field without any hesitation, and Odd-Eyes meets him. He grabs hold of a horn and swings himself around onto Odd-Eyes neck.  Futoshi and Ayu both cheer loudly, and Yuzu has to smile.

Yuya smiles and winks back at them, bowing from atop Odd-Eyes.

“Thank you so much for your applause!  But Odd-Eyes and I aren’t done yet!”

He’s trying so hard, Yuzu thinks.  Just the other day, he was moping over his loss to Hokuto.  But now, he’s here, smiling and hamming it up for the crowd, as though he was never even sad.  How does he manage? Is he still hurting, and just covering up the way he always does? Or is this genuine?

His opponent doesn’t seem quite as charmed, sighing and rolling her eyes from where she’s perched herself on a ledge above him. 

Yuya takes another couple of daring leaps for Action Cards as the battle continues— duds, every one of them.  Mieru plays a card that locks him out of drawing, and he needs to discard a spell to get rid of it— but he can’t seem to get any Action Spells, only Traps.  He’s starting to look frustrated, Yuzu can tell even from here. Odd-Eyes vanishes with a cry and Yuya reluctantly puts the card back into his hand.

“Mieru thinks that’s enough of this,” Mieru calls suddenly.  “Sakaki Yuya, you should quit this duel.”

“Huh?” Yuya says back.

“What is she on about?” Sora grumbles around his sucker.

“You’ve had abominable luck this whole duel,” Mieru says.  “And it’s only going to get worse.”

She produces her crystal apple from one of the deep pockets in her dress, holding it out.

“Mieru has seen your future, Sakaki Yuya, and it’s not a good one,” she says.  “If you continue on this path, Mieru has seen that it will end in a horrible tragedy.”

Yuya just stares at her with disbelief.  Yuzu clenches her fists in her lap. What is she trying to say?  Is Mieru just trying to throw Yuya off his game, or scare him into giving up?

“I don’t believe in fortune-telling,” Yuya says.

“Well, you should,” Mieru huffs.  “Because Mieru is never wrong, Sakaki-san!  And MIeru has seen that your fate is surrounded by unbearable sadness, if you don’t give up this duel right now!”

Yuya tenses.  Is it just Yuzu, or is he getting pale?  She’s not really making him nervous, is she?

Before she knows what she’s doing, she’s standing up, pendulum smacking her against the chest, and cupping her hands around her mouth.

“Yuya!!” she shouts.  “You can do it! Whatever sad future is ahead— you can beat it!  Because that’s what you do!!”

Yuya jumps, looking up towards Yuzu with surprise.  A tiny smile pulls at his lips. Before Yuzu can shout again, he’s lifting up one fist towards her—  _ thank you _ .

He turns back to the match.

“I’d be a poor performer if I didn’t play out my show til the end!” Yuya says.  “My turn!”

He yanks his goggles down over his eyes and bolts for the end of the pillar.

At that very moment, the gigantic stone chandelier above him lets out a loud, bone-shaking crack.  Yuzu feels something in her freeze, and the world goes in slow motion.

The chandelier crumbles overhead, crashing down hard on the pillar where Yuya was just a second ago, and Yuzu’s scream chokes her.  There’s so much dust billowing up into the air that she can’t see what happened, where Yuya is, what’s going on— oh god, how did that happen?  How did an Action Field just fall apart like that?? Why was it programmed to do that?

“Yuya!!” she screams.  “Yuya!!”

Mieru shrinks back from the wreckage in the arms of her monster, eyes wide and face pale.  Her Tarotrei leans her closer to the wreckage at her tapped command, and Mieru leans forward, staring.  Yuzu is seconds away from vaulting over the seats and running for Yuya.

“I discard one Action Spell to release the lock on my deck!”

Yuya’s voice cracks through the air, and Yuzu’s knees give out with the utter relief.

As the dust clears, there’s Yuya.  Standing atop a pile of crumbled rocks, miraculously unharmed.  He grins, goggles glinting in the light.

“And that means,” he says.  “I can draw!”

With a flourish, he puts his hand on his cards, and whips the card free.  She can’t see his eyes through his goggles, but she can see the wild grin that comes over his face as he looks towards it.

“Mieru-san!” he calls.  “Sorry to break your fortune-telling is always right streak!”

“What on earth are you talking about??” Mieru says, still looking pale and shaken from what just happened.

Yuya grins.  He glances towards the stands as he pulls of his goggles, and winks at everyone in the stands.  Sora grins and leans back.

“Yeah, he’s got this in the bag,” he says.

Yuya flips the card towards Mieru.

“I activate...Polymerization!”

Yuzu’s heart beats so hard against her chest that she can feel it in her feet, as the air swirls and sparkles, twisting Yuya’s monsters together.  For just a second, she remembers the feeling of watching Reiji Fusion Summon, the nerves that had sparked in her chest at the sight of the new technique.

There’s none of that with Yuya’s Fusion.  Yuya’s Fusion is...it’s beautiful.

Yuzu’s hands curl up against the back of the seat in front of her.

_ I have to get stronger, too, _ she thinks suddenly.   _ So that I can be unafraid, just like Yuya. _

She swallows thickly, feeling her cards go warm in her pocket somehow.

_ I can’t rely on Pendulums.  I have to learn something new. _

_ I have to be able to stand up for myself. _


	21. S H U N / R E I J I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, first off!! apologies for a day late on this update! things have been a wild ride over here with stuff ;w;
> 
> also, an announcement: for the time being, I'm reducing this fic to one update per week. From now on until I can get a better handle on it, this fic will only update Mondays. Thank you for your patience!!! <3

I’m serious about this revolution.

 

**I know you are.**

* * *

“You’ve only got one duel left and you’re in the tournament!  How are you feeling?”

“Great!  Like I could move a mountain or something!”

“Now don’t get too cocky on your sensei here.”

Shun clenches his jaw at the sound of laughter around the corner.  The boy’s voice really does sound like Yuto’s. If he knows what to listen for, he can definitely hear the difference, but he pronounces words almost the same way, inflects sentences the same, even laughs almost the same.  It’s like hearing Yuto do a strange accent.

He keeps himself calm, though, and forces himself to just observe.  The boy is  _ not _ Yuto.  And his real target is the other one.

Shun edges around the corner, peering around it.  The two boys are on the harbor again, practicing their dueling.  The short one, with the blue hair, is crouching down and pointing at some cards he’s laid out on the ground.  The other one, the Yuto doppelganger, leans with his hands on his knees to look at what the short one is pointing to.  Shun trains his eyes on the one with the powder blue hair. He looks young, like he can’t be older than twelve or thirteen.

It’s hard to see from here.  Shun backs around the corner again, turn towards the warehouse beside him, and makes a leap for the lip of the roof.

He knows how to be quiet while doing things like this by now— a skill born of survival.  Carefully, he wriggles himself onto the roof and pulls himself to the top, pressing himself against the paneling.  From here, he can see the two of them much more easily, and doesn’t have to peek around a corner.

Mentally, he reviews the information Akaba Reiji gave him.  He’s noted several large bursts of Fusion energy all around the city for the past couple of weeks.  One of those bursts ended in the carding of the LDS Fusion professor, Marco.

Many of them seem to coincide with Shiunin Sora: a new student at the small You Show Dueling School.  He is, at least, Reiji’s prime suspect for the incidents and the carding of Professor Marco. While all of his enrollment papers seem to be normal, Reiji suspects Academia forgery, especially with Shiunin’s prowess at dueling: to qualify for LDS’ world championship, Shiunin has defeated six opponents in a row already.  He’ll participate in Reiji’s tournament, his secret initiative to find and select duelists to go up against Academia with. If an Academia spy infiltrated that, it could be disastrous.

Reiji asked Ruri to rejoin LDS, to watch students and see if any look like either spies, or useful additions to the planned attack team.

Shun was asked to investigate Shiunin Sora.

Shun’s skin crawls to think that this boy might be an Academia agent— right beneath his nose, too.  He wants to explode from his hiding place, challenge him to a duel, and destroy him immediately. But Ruri asked him to play along with Reiji for now, that it seemed best to go with his plans when they were on his own turf.  It chafes, but he’ll listen to Ruri. She’s gotten them this far, and she’s always been the planner of the two of them.

So he bites back his disgust, and tries to ignore the way his skin crawls to see someone with the same face as Yuto interacting with a Fusion spy.

“Whoa!  So that’s a way I can do it too?” Yuto’s doppelganger says, eyes lighting up at something that Sora has shown him.

“Yup!  Remember, Fusion is a powerful move, but if you can’t get the pieces together fast, you’re in trouble.  So you’ll want multiple options.”

“Right!  I’ll definitely do my best!”

“I’d better see you in that tournament with me, I want a rematch with you!”

“Absolutely!”

The pair of them grin as they give each other a high five, and Shun’s lips curl.  That smile on Shiunin’s face looks fake. And as for Yuto’s doppelganger, Sakaki Yuya— the boy with the magic, mysterious new summoning technique....

Shun’s hands tighten into fists.

There’s no way the similarity is a coincidence.

He’s positive that Sakaki Yuya is an enemy.

* * *

“He’s definitely the one you’re after.”

Reiji blinks and glances up.  He hadn’t noticed Kurosaki come in, but he’s over his shoulder, now, looking at Reiji’s screen.  Reiji has an image of Shiunin Sora on it at the moment, and Kurosaki’s eyes are trained onto it.

“And what makes you say that?”

“The uniform he’s wearing, and the cards he uses.  I’ve watched a few of his qualification duels, and the way that he’s helping that other boy learn Fusion.  It all stinks of Academia.”

Reiji purses his lips, and glances down at the image of Shiunin’s profile.

The boy has qualified for the Maiami Championship and registered, and so he is now in Reiji’s database.  He clicks on an image to look over Shiunin’s registered decklist.

“From what you and your sister told me, Academia agents generally make use of Ancient Gear decks.”

“Do you think a spy is going to make it so obvious?”

“You clearly think so, as you’re drawing from his  _ uniform _ of all things as proof.  Would a spy continue to wear his uniform so blatantly?”

Kurosaki scowls when Reiji looks at him.  It’s a needless pricking at him, Reiji knows, but he must examine all possibilities.  

“Higher ranked Academia agents use non-Ancient Gear decks, too,” Kurosaki says quietly.  “You know you’re in trouble when they summon something you’re not ready for.”

His words speak of pain he doesn’t voice, and Reiji relents.  He’s suspected Shiunin Sora for some time, anyway. The boy could very easily be a spy.

But he wonders if he’s the spy he’s looking for right now.

He clicks to the next screen, one that has a dark video feed of the dary that Marco went missing.  He has an image of Marco clearly enough, preparing to duel. But his opponent is not in view. By a stroke of luck— or by design— his opponent managed to avoid most of Reiji’s cameras.  Every time he thinks he might get a glimpse of fabric in the corner, or perhaps a hank of hair, the screen seems to flicker, and then there’s nothing.

Still, he has an impression of something.  Someone. And he thinks that he has a sense that this person is taller than Shiunin Sora is.

Perhaps Sora is like Ruri and Kurosaki.  Ruri was the face, and Kurosaki the one in the background. 

Shiunin may not have arrived to this dimension alone.

“What’s that?” Kurosaki asks.

“A possibility,” Reiji says.  He closes the screen. “Our tournament will start soon.  I hope you’re ready to participate. If Shiunin Sora truly is our man, I’ll want you to find out.”

“You’re going to rig the tournament so I duel him?”

“That’s precisely what I’m going to do.”

Kurosaki snorts.

“Fine then.  I’ll gladly take him on.”

He stalks out of the room, then, without talking anymore.  He’s an impulsive one. Reiji will have to keep a closer eye on him— or perhaps ask Ruri to do so.  He should check in with her, on that note. He wants her to participate in the tournament in a few days time as well.

His screen blips.  He pauses and looks down at it.  His lips part.

And then he smiles.

Sakaki Yuya has officially qualified for the Maiami Championship.


	22. R U R I / Y U Z U / M A S U M I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, I'm finally back to this project!! I'm so so sorry about the delay and the weird update day of Friday instead of Monday. This project kinda fell under the cracks after I got back from my vacation and keeping up has been a little difficult ;w; I fully plan to continue updating on Mondays, so fingers crossed, you'll have a regular update next Monday. Thanks for all of your patience and your support on this project so far!

**the future remains infinite**

**infinite**

**infinite**

**infinite**

**doesn't it?**

* * *

 

“Sorry I’m late; I had to make an excuse to Hokuto-san and Yaiba-san.”

Reiji glances up at her from his screen as Ruri hurries over from the elevator.  She doesn’t really like this control room; it’s too dark and gloomy, with just the computer screens to light up the space.  That can’t be good for your eyes. Not that Akaba Reiji seems to know the definition of the word “self-care.” She’s only been here for a few days, and she’s already noticed him pulling all-nighters and skipping meals.

“It’s quite all right.  I’m sorry to pull you away.  I’m quite impressed that you managed to befriend those students so quickly.”

“They’re sweet,” she says.  “It’s easy to become friends with people if you like them.”

Reiji blinks, and he actually looks sort of confused for a moment.  Ruri wonders if Reiji has ever actually made a friend. He seems to have locked himself away in his pursuit of defeating his father, and while it’s comforting to know they have such an ally, it also strikes Ruri as being kind of sad.

She walks over to the screen, then, and takes a look at the stadium where she’d just been with her LDS friends a moment ago.  A duel is getting started: Kotsu Masumi, and Hiragi Yuzu. A tremor passes through her for a moment. Yuzu. Hadn’t she heard that name before?

“Why did you want me up here instead of at the stadium, though?  Is there something wrong?”

“I was interested in hearing your opinion in person,” said Reiji.

Reiji taps on the small screen and sends the video feed up to the biggest one, that takes up almost the entire wall.  The duelist profile images of the two opponents appear side by side for a moment. Masumi she knows already, of course, and the other one...

Her skin crawls.  That’s right. She remembers where she’s heard Yuzu’s name before.  When she saw the boy who looked like Yuto, and he called her by another name.

The girl that looks out at her from the screen has her face.  It’s like looking into a mirror, if she cut her hair and put it in pigtails.  It’s eerie, and makes her stomach twist to look at her for too long.

“Do you know her?” Reiji asks, and she startles, realizing that he’s been staring at her.

“N-no,” Ruri says.  “But...she looks a lot like me.”

“I initially thought that she _was_ you.  I thought perhaps she was trying to infiltrate my school to scope out the competition.  Clearly, I was wrong.”

He studies Ruri for a moment longer, and she shifts uncomfortably, tugging on the hem of her jacket.  On the screen, the profiles sweep away to show off instead the Action Field for this duel; a massive construction of twisting, overlapping bridges.  It looks dangerous.

“You wanted me here to see her?” she says. “Do you think I’m keeping anything from you?”

Reiji’s lips purse, and he hesitates for what feels like a second too long.

“No,” he says.  “But I think perhaps something else is at play here.  And I intend to find out what.”

He turns from her, then, to focus on the duel.  Ruri’s hands tighten into the fabric of her long shirt, not sure how she’s supposed to feel.

In her pocket, she feels a sudden humming.  Her fingers slid over to where she keeps her cards, and the vibration passes into her fingers.  Assembled Nightingale is trembling. She shudders.

 _What’s wrong?_ she thinks towards her monster, eyes looking up towards Hiragi Yuzu.   _Is there something you’re not telling me?_

* * *

This is not going as smoothly as Yuzu had hoped.

Masumi darts past Yuzu once again, grabbing for the Action Card before she can reach it.

“Not so powerful without your Pendulums, are you?” she says with a smug grin.

Yuzu grits her teeth.  The pressure is getting to her like a buzz across her skin.  Her Pendulum monsters are in the Extra Deck already— Masumi has learned from their last duel against each other.  All she had to do was destroy the Scales, and Yuzu’s deck limps a bit behind Masumi’s.

Bloom Bard stares up at her from her hand, but she can’t summon her.  She’s too high a level without her Pendulum Cards to summon her, and Masumi keeps destroying all of her other monsters before she can use them for a tribute summon.  That Lady Dia card is intimidating, even if she only has zero attack until Masumi discards a spell card.

She needs to find a way out of this.  If she falls here, then...

Her eyes flicker from the bridges to the stands.  She’s too far away to see Yuya and the others very clearly, but she can see that Yuya is jumping up and down, hands cupped around his mouth to shout even if his words are swallowed up by the rest of the roaring crowd.

Yuzu has to win.  Yuya’s been working so hard, and she needs to keep winning alongside him.  She absolutely has to win.

Masumi snatches up another Action Card before Yuzu can reach it.  

“Take a direct attack, Lady Dia!” she commands.

Yuzu barely has enough time to skid to a stop and brace herself for the Action Field-enhanced impact.  The knight smacks her with the flat of its lance, and she goes tumbling backwards down one of the bridges, rolling and skidding.

“Have you given up yet?” Masumi says.  “You can’t win without your Pendulums, Hiragi Yuzu!”

Yuzu takes a second to breathe, shoulders shaking, hair falling in curtains on either side of her face as she braces herself against the ground.  Can’t win? Maybe Masumi is right. Her deck without Pendulums wasn’t strong enough before, and Masumi’s locked her cards away. How is she supposed to win without that?  If only she had trained better, if she hadn’t started to rely on them alone...Yuya was smart, he went out and tried to find a new way to use his cards, and she...she didn’t work hard enough.  She should have thought after Reiji, she would have thought she needed to work harder, but...

Her hands are trembling slightly against the ground, cards still held tightly in her fingers.  She turns the cards towards her, looking at the images of her beloved songstresses.

“I’m sorry,” she says.  “I couldn’t do it.”

She feels like her monsters are somehow watching her from her cards, and she feels ashamed.  It’s her fault that they couldn’t win. She didn’t direct them well enough. She’s a failure of a duelist...

 _Trust me_.

Is that her own mind playing tricks?  She doesn’t hear it so much as she thinks it, but she looks up anyway as though someone’s spoken to her.  The crowd seems to have faded to a faint murmur, like her ears are stuffed with cotton.

For some reason, her eyes fall back down to her cards.  Besides Bloom Bard, there isn’t a single Pendulum monster in her hand: they’re all her ordinary effect monsters, the ones she had before the mysterious power washed over her deck and added new cards and transformed others into Pendulums.  They’re familiar, nostalgic faces of joy smiling up at her, the beautiful characters she fell so in love with that she could never use another kind of deck. She loved the sounds they made when they reached the field, the happy, melodic noises that would fill her heart up with joy.  They’re only holograms, and yet they always seem so excited to take to the field, to entertain and sing and dance in battle for the crowd, making her own heart beat faster and her own excitement for the performance of the duel skyrocket.

They aren’t Pendulums, but they’re still important.  She’d won so many duels with them, and lost just as many.  They aren’t Pendulums...

But she should trust in their power.

She picks herself up off the ground, steadying herself on her feet.

“You at least have the decency to face your loss on your feet,” Masumi says.

“I’m not going to lose,” Yuzu says, a fire running through her.  “Because I’m not alone!”

She takes Bloom Bard from her hand, and slides it into the Pendulum slot.

“I set the Pendulum Scale with Scale Four Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight!” she shouts.

Bloom Bard shoots into the air on a pillar of light, her sword swinging around and sending a sweet tone through the air where it sliced.  Masumi stares up at it with surprise.

“What can you do with only one scale?” she says.

“Pendulums are more versatile than that,” Yuzu says, winking.  Her stage persona is coming back to her, and she’s alight with excitement.  “It would be a shame if someone only knew one song right?”

She presented Bloom Bard with one hand.

“Bloom Bard’s Pendulum effect activates!  When she’s set in the Pendulum zone, I can discard one card, and add one Melodious monster from my deck to my hand!”

She slips one monster from her hand into the Graveyard slot, and her deck pokes out the one she needs.  She smiles at her monster. This one isn’t a Pendulum either, but she was such a fool for thinking she needed only Pendulums to win.

She just needs all of her monsters, all kinds of them, all working together.  And she knew just how to direct them all in perfect synch.

“I summon Soprano, the Melodious Songstress!”

The woman appears in a whirl of light and song onto the field, her hair swinging around her in a beautiful whirlwind.  The sound tickles down Yuzu’s arms, and she feels giddy all of a sudden. She’s riding on a high of excitement, and she’sready for her next performance.

“Soprano’s effect!  Once per turn, I can use her and monsters from my hand or field to Fusion Summon!”

Masumi’s mouth drops open, and her eyes bulge.  

“How did you...”

Yuzu doesn’t know either.  But she knows she can do it, and when Soprano spins to meet the Mozarta she discards from her hand, and the two monsters’ songs twist and entwine together, she knows that this is the most right thing she’d done in so long.

“Angel’s song!  Supreme genius! With the guidance of the baton, gather your power!  Fusion Summon!”

She pulls her hands down together the way she’d watched Yuya and Sora do it, the pose feeling right.  Light swirls around her, and then the world seems to open, and the new shape floats down through the hole in the air.

“Appear, Bloom Diva, the Melodious Choir!”

The monster is brand new, a cherubic faced being with lavender hair and a beautiful blue dress that turned into a flare of pink petals, as though she is standing on a lily pad.  Yuzu feels a sparkle in her chest, like she’d just cast a real magic spell.

“It was a pretty light show,” Masumi says, looking just a bit shocked still.  “But what are you going to do with just one thousand attack?”

“Bloom Diva’s song is a special one,” Yuzu says.  “Bloom Diva, Reflect Shout!”

Bloom Diva clasps her hands against her chest, closes her eyes, and inhales.  And then her song echoes out of her in a glowing green whirlwind that catches Lady Dia up in its wave.

“When Bloom Diva attacks a special summoned monster, she is not destroyed— and you take all of the damage I would have taken!”

Masumi swears, and jumps out of the way as Lady Dia shatters, the shards raining down over her head and taking her life points down to just one thousand.  

“I activate my own trap!” Masumi says.  “Brilliant Spark! When you destroy one of my monsters, you take damage equal to its original attack points!  This will end you!”

Yuzu doesn’t even pause, hitting the activation button on her disk.

“I activate Melodious Illusion!  When you activate a trap during the Battle Phase, I can negate that effect— and then one of my Melodious monsters can attack twice!”

The glowing ball of energy that remained from Lady Dia and Brilliant Spark flickers and starts to fizz.  But Masumi bolts off down the bridge, and Yuzu’s heart quickens. She’s not done yet.

“If an effect would stop Brilliant Spark, I can discard a card to negate and destroy the card that targeted it!”

Another Action Card!  Yuzu has to beat her this time!  Her eyes rove the field for some sign of a card.  Which one is Masumi going for?

Masumi swings off one of the bridges to a nearby one, and bolts down the bridge again, and then Yuzu sees it— the one that Masumi is gunning for.  She’s too high up to reach it!

Bloom Bard sends another humming tone over the field.  Yuzu knows its just a normal holographic action, but the sound calms her, soothes the roaring in her ears.  Her eyes flicker to Bloom Diva, and she sees the eyes meet hers, as though there’s truly a sentient mind in there who knows what she’s planning, and is ready for it.

She can make it.  She just has to trust her monsters again.

Yuzu pulls herself to the top of the railing.  She balances on top of it for just a moment, inhaling.  Masumi is making to dive across for the card balanced on the pole.  Yuzu licks her lips.

She dives.

The air roars around her ears, stealing away the sound of the crowd.  In that moment, there is only the open air, only the wind, only the silence in her brain.  Her arm reaches out.

Her hand snatches onto the card.

Immediately, she drops into solid arms, and her mind rattles for a moment.  She clings to the card like it’s a lifeline.

Bloom Diva spins gently and alights on the ground on a lower bridge.  Her legs shake, but she lets Bloom Diva lower her to her feet.

Just a bit overhead, Masumi is staring at her with wide, shocked eyes.  Yuzu smiles, as the shake in her limbs turns into a wild sense of triumph.

“At You Show, we duel along with our monsters,” she declares.  “All right, Bloom Diva! Finish this duel with one more song!”

* * *

“Ugh!” she shouts, punching both hands into the air.  It feels good to let the sound of frustration out of her, and Masumi stands there for a moment, both arms raised in the air towards the darkening sky while she listens to her voice echo against the empty streets.  Most people must still be in the stadium, since there was still a duel or two left after her own with Yuzu. It’ll run late.

How frustrating, she thinks, as she lets her arms fall down to her sides and begins making her way back home.  Ugh! She wants to let out another loud yell. It was such a good duel though. She can’t even be mad about it, and that’s what makes her even madder.  Yuzu was a great opponent, both times, and Masumi simply couldn’t match up. It’s frustrating— it’s egging her on. She needs to get even better, to catch up with Hiragi Yuzu.  Perhaps this isn’t frustration she’s feeling swelling in her chest. Maybe it’s excitement. She wants to be able to beat Hiragi Yuzu, and the feeling is electrifying.  Yuzu had better win!  Masumi had even given her Crystal Rose, so she had no excuses not to become the champion now!  And then Masumi would beat her and become the champion instead!

“That’s it!  I’m going to practice all night,” she mutters to herself.

Something in an alleyway clatters.

Immediately, her growing excitement flattens into a cold, stabbing panic.  She jumps back from the side of the buildings to put space between her and the mouth of the alley nearby.  For a long moment, nothing happens. Her heart slowly begins to stabilize. It was probably just a cat.

 _Bang_.  

Masumi almost screams, but she swallows it.  The streets this way towards her neighborhood are so empty, and she’s suddenly acutely aware of how alone she is.  She jerks her arm with the Duel Disk still attached up instinctively.

She should run, she thinks.  She should just turn and bolt.  But something keeps her there, feet plastered to the ground, and she waits with a growing nervousness for some other sound, some movement in the alleyway.

The figure bolts free of the shadows, and then nearly skids to a stop to avoid running into her.  She yelps, then, jumping back, and her Duel Disk activates automatically as it picks up on the signal of another, nearby Disk turning on.  The movement is wild, though, and a few of her cards scatter free of her Duel Disk and onto the ground.

The figure lurches back from her, eyes wide and wild, his hair a bedraggled mess around his cheeks.  He looks like he’s been living on the streets, his clothes dirty and worn in places. He has on a Duel Disk with the blade already activated, and his wild magenta eyes catch on her own activated disk.  He takes another stumbling step back from her, as though he’s panicked. _That_ kind of pisses her off, but maybe it’s just her own panic.  He’s the one rattling around in alleys and bursting out to scare her!  What right does he have to make her panic like that? What’s _wrong_ with him?

“Hey!” she says, her fear bubbling into a nervous anger.  “What’s the big idea??”

He almost flinches at the sound of her voice, and his eyes flicker in all directions before settling on the ground.  His lips form a swear that he doesn’t release, and he takes another shuddering step back away from her. What’s he looking at?  She chances a glance towards the ground, to where a few of her cards have fallen. Polymerization is resting face up atop a few others.

She hears the buzz of a hologram turning on, and her eyes shoot back up to see the boy slapping a card onto his disk.  The air actually seems to move when his writhing plant monster appears, throwing its vines every which way and somehow stirring up a breeze past her arms, even though there’s no Action Field.  Is he trying to duel her?? Right now??

“I’m not going back,” he says.


	23. S O R A / R E I J I / Y U U R I

Stop hesitating

      It's only going to be what kills you

* * *

 

The crowd isn’t cheering anymore, but if it was, Sora wouldn’t be able to tell over the sounds of the bombs crashing into the holographic city.  It’s hot, the air is somehow full of soot even on a holographic field, and he can barely see past the blur in his eyes from the smoke and fires.

Still, he can’t help but let out a faint laugh.  This is what he was made to do— wiping out stupid XYZ scum.  It’s just his luck that Kurosaki Shun wasn’t Reiji’s spy, like he had expected: but an XYZ refugee.

Kurosaki snarls at him from the other side of the field, and Sora grins back.  Why shouldn’t he? This is a game. A game that he was trained to win.

A game that he can’t afford to lose.

Sora bolts across the field as Kurosaki calls out his final attack.  Kurosaki thinks he’s going to win, but Sora hasn’t spent his time in this dimension sitting on his ass.  He’s been learning from this dimension, learning it’s tricks and secrets, and he’s been learning from Yuya as much as Yuya is learning from him.  He knows there’s an Action Card that will turn the tide, and there’s no way this XYZ scum’s learned Action Fields better than him by now! There’s no way he’ll ever lose!

He grabs the card and skids to his knees.  Yes! It’s the one he needs! He moves to put it on the disk.

Somehow, over the roar of the field, he hears a voice screaming out from the crowd.

_“SORA, LOOK UP!!”_

Sora looks up.

 _Fuck_.

The building over his head explodes around him and for a moment, he is lost in a haze of smoke and debris and he’s not sure but something may have hit his head, all he knows is that he’s blacking out.

_Oh god._

_I’m going to lose._

_I lost I lost I lost I lost I lost_

_“I have to get stronger,” Yuya says.  “This loss hurt but...I’ll use that. I’ll make sure I win next time.”_

_But that’s impossible_ , Sora thinks, as the world goes dark, feeling a vague spike of panic overtake him.   _When you lose, you die._

* * *

 

“Akaba-san, there’s a problem.”

Reiji looks up from his report of the Maiami Championship results so far, and glances at Nakajima, who’s come in without knocking.  It’s often hard to read him behind his sunglasses, but to come in without announcing himself means this is serious. Reiji turns in his seat towards him.

“What’s wrong?  Besides the fact that Shiunin Sora is, quite clearly, an Academia spy and we’ve willingly brought him into our hospital.”

Nakajima actually looks pale, and he wordlessly puts an envelope onto Reiji’s desk.

“We found this on the ground this morning,” he says.

Reiji looks at the envelope.  A finger of dread courses through him.  Nerves hampering his fingers, he slowly opens the envelope.

It’s worse than he fears when he withdraws the plastic sealed card, with an image imprinted on its face.  He knows her. Kotsu Masumi, one of his students. His fingers tighten on the card, crinkling it just a bit.  She looks more shocked than frightened, frozen in time.

“Where was it found?”

“On her route home from the stadium.  She never got home after her duel with Hiragi Yuzu.”

Finding Professor Marco was unnerving.  Finding this...he has to put the card down to conceal the shake in his fingers, trying to keep his face as smooth and impassable as possible.  This is one of his students. A child, one who had never yet agreed to be a part of a war. This is his fault for not protecting her.

This is an inexcusable offense and he will not forgive his father for it.

“Have our team working on Marco look at it.  Be incredibly careful. Did anything come up on our videos?”

“Just this,” Nakajima said, waving a hand to activate the holographic screens.

Unlike the last videos with Marco, this one doesn’t seem to skip or blur.  Reiji sees Masumi, standing on the edge of an alleyway. Her eyes widen and she jumps back, but her opponent, concealed in the alley, turns on some kind of light that envelops her.

As the light fades, for just a second, Reiji can see her assailant’s face illuminated.

“Play that back.  Frame by frame.”

Nakajima gestures to the screen and it does what Reiji asks.  One frame at a time, Reiji sees the light fading, Masumi vanished.

“Stop.”

The light has faded just enough to reveal and illuminate the boy’s face without obscuring it.  Nakajima lets out a whispered swear, but Reiji’s mind whirs.

“It’s not Sakaki Yuya,” he says, before Nakajima can say anything.

“But it looks just like him!”

“Sakaki Yuya was still in the stadium at this time, dueling with Sawatari Shingo on live camera in front of thousands of people,” Reiji says.

His mind casts to Ruri.  Her similarity to Hiragi Yuzu.  It seems they are not the only ones with doppelgangers.

And Reiji remembers this one.

* * *

Yuuri crunches his body as thin as he can make it, fitting himself through the hole in the bottom of the warehouse.  He can hear the boots echoing down the end of the harbor. If that man finds him now, Yuuri will be stuck in between and he’ll be yanked back out and dragged back.  He sucks in his chest as tight as he can, willing himself through.

As the boots come ever closer, Yuuri’s body pops through and he’s inside the dark warehouse.  He doesn’t give himself even a moment to breathe, immediately shoving himself to his feet and bolting off into the dark.  Only the light from the rotted hole in the siding shows him the vague edges of packing crates, and once he’s around the first layer of them, it’s almost pitch black in here.  As much as he doesn’t want to, he has to slow down, feeling his way forward with his hands.

He hears the boots come to a stop just outside the warehouse and swears.  He thought that coming in here might throw the man off his scent, but he’s too smart for that.  He knows Yuuri is in here, and he’ll find his own way in.

It’s never ending, these goddamn agents sent to drag him back to that prison: first the man with the slicked back hair, then that girl, and now it’s _Barrett_.

“Yuuri,” he hears the voice call through the hole behind him, sound echoing off the sides of the warehouse.  “Yuuri, it is time to come home.”

“Fuck you,” Yuuri says back, knowing that he’s giving away his position.

He makes a leap for one of the stacks of packing crates, and wriggles himself up on top.  He’ll find some place to hide, maybe he can wait Barrett out until the man thinks he’s left the warehouse of his own accord and goes somewhere else to look for him.  

His plants hiss against the edges of his mind; they’re agitated and it’s making him even more nervous.  Barrett is a strong duelist and Yuuri can’t afford to take the time to beat him. In the time that it would take to duel and win, Barrett could have summoned the rest of the Obelisk Force— Yuuri is powerful and he knows it, but even he knows the futility of going up against Academia’s numbers.

The sound of a creaking door catches his attention and for a moment, his mind whites out with panic.  When he comes back to himself, he is flattened against the top of the packing crate, trying to keep his breaths as quiet as he can.  Fuck this man, fuck Academia, fuck everything. He’s not going back. He’ll kill himself first.

The thought sends a wild burst of laughter through his chest, but he swallows it before it comes out loud.  He wonders if it’s possible to card yourself with your own Duel Disk.

Nothing immediately follows the sound of the creaking door.  Of course not. Barrett is a soldier. He’ll be creeping along slowly, quietly.  It was just the door itself being unoiled that caused him to make such a mistake.  Yuuri waits, holding his breath.

 _Swish, swish_.

There’s a soft sound, like fabric swinging back and forth, followed by the faint sound of soft-soled shoes against the floor.  That doesn’t sound like Barrett. The step is shorter than Barrett’s, quicker, someone who’s used to moving more quickly and without as much caution.

A harder step catches Yuuri’s attention, then, coming from the opposite direction.  He tenses. There are two people in here, and one of them could be Barrett. He needs to go.

He’s pretty sure the steps are coming from the aisle that he climbed up from, so he carefully twists himself towards the other one and lets himself down into the other aisle as quietly as he can.

His feet touch the floor, and out of the corner of his eye, he sees a shadow moving.  A large hand reaches for him, and for a moment, he simply freezes. A dangerous, dangerous mistake.  He’s as good as dead.

At least, he would have been, if not for the cold hand that grabs his arm and pulls him back, out of reach of Barrett’s hand.  Yuuri loses his balance, and almost falls over, but whoever has grabbed him does not let him fall. Yuuri makes to throw himself against the hands that hold him, but they’re already gone, and someone is stepping in between him and Barrett.

Yuuri makes another mistake.  He pauses to see who it is that’s appeared, and who it is that’s making Barrett blink in shock.

Something about him is familiar, though Yuuri only sees him from the back.  He’s taller than Yuuri, with slicked gray hair and a long red scarf draped over his shoulders.

“Who are you?” Barrett asks.

The young man doesn’t answer right away, simply adjusting his glasses with one hand.  And then he raises his arm, and a Duel Disk activates there.

“When I defeat you and send you back,” he says, “you can tell Akaba Leo that Reiji sent you.  And that he and his soldiers aren’t welcome in my city.”

Oh, Yuuri thinks with a jolt.  Yuuri absolutely remembers this man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like i'm skipping around and moving really quickly through all of this, but tbh this au isn't changing TOO much so I don't want to drag the story down by lingering over the details where y'all already know what happens, thus why we don't see the whole Sora/Shun fight...I want to get to some of the good stuff in this AU, so I hope y'all are enjoying what I'm getting through so far! Thank you so much to everyone who's leaving comments and stuff, it really makes my day more than you know!!! ;w; <3


	24. R E I J I / Y U Z U

**Come on now, courage now**

**Just one more step**

**Just one more step**

**Just one more step**

**Just**

**one**

**more**

**step**

* * *

 

Reiji doesn’t drop his arm even though the other man’s life points have already reached zero.  He needs to be cautious. He can’t believe that his father has only sent one person after this young man; it seems unlikely at any rate.

The man stumbles, panting for breath— the solid holograms have done significant damage to him, and he drops to one knee.  Teeth grit in frustration, he lifts his disk once more and hits a button.

“I’ve alerted the Professor to our location,” he says.  “Reinforcements will arrive to retrieve the boy soon.”

Then his body glows with a faint blue light, and he disappears in a sprinkling of glowing dust.  Reiji watches the light disperse, considering it for a moment. Then he turns to the boy.

He’s surprised that he hasn’t fled by now, and judging by the look on his face, the boy is just as surprised.  Reiji purses his lips, looks him over. The resemblance is uncanny, as he remembered. The boy looks just like Sakaki Yuya, in the shape of his nose, the tilt of his cheekbones, the shape of his eyes.  Even their height and body shape seems to be the same; the difference lies mostly in the way he holds himself. Yuya stands easily, as though he doesn’t have a care in the world. This boy stands with his shoulders slightly hunched, as though ready to dodge a blow or bolt at the slightest motion.

“Do you remember me?” Reiji asks.

The boy flinches, eyes narrowing.  He looks like he’s thinking about whether or not to run.

“You’re from before,” he says.

“Three years ago, I believe it was,” Reiji says, fixing his glasses.  “It was Yuuri, wasn’t it?”

“And you’re Reiji.  Akaba Reiji.”

Yuuri spits out the name _Akaba_ like it’s a poison, his whole body bristling.  For a moment, Reiji feels like he hears something, whispers along the edge of his mind that make his skin crawl.  The boy almost seems to fade out at the edges, or perhaps there’s something wrong with Reiji’s eyes.

“I take it Leo has not been treating you well since we met.”

Yuuri lets out a hollow laugh, but the whispers fade away.

“What do you want?” he says.  “If you’re going to turn me in for brownie points with dear daddy, you can forget about it.  I’ll kill you before you can think about it.”

Reiji snorts.

“If you recall from our last encounter, my father holds no feelings of affection towards me.”

It had been three years ago, and the boy in front of him looks nearly the same save for the growth.  The same hollow eyes and dark circles. Reiji remembers clearly the day he stumbled through his father’s teleportation system, to find out where he’d gone and why his mother was screaming in his office, throwing all of his things to the floor.

That had been their meeting.  He’d wandered through the halls of the place he now knew as Academia, and there the boy had appeared, slamming into his chest and sending them both tumbling to the floor.  Reiji remembered the panic in the boy’s eyes, the electrodes still attached to his temples with the torn wires dangling behind him. He’d heard the feet pounding down the hallway and the shouts ringing out.  He hadn’t thought about it. He’d simply grabbed the boy’s hand and ran.

The halls had twisted and turned forever back then, and Reiji had never been good at running.  His lungs burned by the time they broke through an open set of doors, stumbling out onto an open harbor.

“Where’s your boat?” the boy had gasped, eyes flicking across the empty harbor.  “We’re going to a boat, aren’t we?”

“A boat?”

“How the fuck else do you get here?” the boy said.

“I don’t know— I don’t even know where we are,” Reiji had said.  “Or who you are! Or why you’re running away. Or— what this is.”

He’d tugged one of the electrodes from the boy’s temple, and the boy had flinched, jumping back so fast that he’d put three feet between them in a blink.  For a moment they had only stared at each other.

And then the hands had grabbed Reiji’s arms, and another set of arms belonging to teens taller than him had grabbed the boy and dragged him back, screaming and kicking.

“Leave him alone!! Leave him alone!! Where are you taking him??”

An all too familiar sigh had sounded behind him, and he choked on a gasp, looking back.  There was his father, looking at the kicking, screaming boy with an expression that Reiji had never, ever seen on his father’s face before.

Hate.

“Take him back,” Leo ordered.  “Sedate him if you have to.”

“Bitch!  Bastard! Put me down!  I’m not going back!” the boy screamed.

“Leave him alone!” Reiji shouted.  “Father! Put him down! You’re hurting him!”

Only then had Leo finally spared him a glance.

“What happens to the boy is not your concern,” he’d said, as the boy was dragged away and his screams faded into the distance.  He nodded at one of the people holding Reiji, and one of them clamped a cold bracelet to his wrist. “Go home, Reiji. You have no place in Academia.”

“Father!” Reiji had tried to scream, tried to ask him what was going on, what he was doing— but then light had overtaken him, and he was standing in front of LDS Tower, as though he’d never left.

Several weeks later, he’d discovered the last encrypted files his father had left behind, and found two pictures squirreled away in a folder.  One of them was the boy.

Reiji looks at Yuuri before him now, considering him.  He looks gaunt and twitchy, eyes flickering all around him.  He wonders with a cold feeling in his stomach what, exactly, his father had done to this child.

 _What about him causes you to hate him?_ he thinks towards a father that can’t speak to.

Slowly, he extends a hand towards Yuuri.  Yuuri flinches anyway, staring at it as though it’s a snake.

“I want to take him down,” he says.  “You’ll be safer with me than anywhere else.”

Yuuri stares at the hand for a long, long moment.  His breaths are short and gasping.

“How can I trust you?” Yuuri says.

Reiji’s lips press together.  Then he takes his hand back, unclips his duel disk from his wrist, and holds it out to Yuuri.  Yuuri’s eyes widen. After a beat, he slowly takes the disk from Reiji’s fingers, gripping it in both hands.

“I could kill you,” he says.

“I know,” Reiji says.

He waits.  This is a gamble.  Yuuri is scared. He’s the one who’s been carding his teachers and students, probably because he mistook them for an enemy ready to drag him back to whatever awful things he’d experienced.  Yuuri might decide to card him, and eliminate unknowns.

Then Yuuri hands the disk back, sticking it out at the end of his arm.

“You’re crazy,” he says.  “Fine. I’ll come with you.  But one funny move, Reiji-kun, and I’ll feed you to my plants.”

“Fair enough,” Reiji says, taking his disk back and replacing it on his arm.  “I would expect nothing less.”

* * *

“But he’s all right, isn’t he?  Please, he’s one of our school’s students, you have to at least let us see him!”

The man with the sunglasses shakes his head.

“Sorry, kid,” he says.  “But we’re not supposed to let visitors in.”

“This is basically kidnapping!” Yuzu says, throwing her hands into the air.  “LDS might be in charge of taking care of tournament safety, but this is ridiculous!  We weren’t even allowed to take him to a public hospital!”

“If you’re not his guardian, there’s not much we can do,” the other guard says.  “Sorry, kiddo. I’m sure he’ll wake up soon.”

That one actually does sound apologetic, sending her a half smile.  Yuzu isn’t in the mood for half apologies, though. She puts her hands on her hips, shaking slightly.  She sees Yuya and Gongenzaka drawing back out of the corner of her eye, as though they can sense the flood she’s about to unleash.

“I want to talk to Akaba Reiji!” she says, letting her voice echo through the LDS hallways.  “I want to talk to him right now! This is ridiculous!”

“You can’t just talk to the president,” the apologetic guard says, but Yuzu draws up to her full height, cutting him off.

“I’m the current representative for You Show Duel School, a prospective partner with Leo Duel School!  I’ve already spoken with the president about further partnership opportunities, and believe me, he’ll be very upset if he hears anything got in the way of us having appropriate negotiations!”

Yuya lets out a low whoosh of breath that’s almost a whistle, and Gongenzaka makes an approving grunt.  Both guards are looking very uncomfortable right now.

“I don’t think he’s in,” he says.  “But uh...I can buzz the desk.”

“That’s acceptable,” Yuzu huffs, and the guard turns  away to put a finger to his headset and start talking into it.

Yuzu folds her arms and steps back.  That’s enough intimidation for today.

Yuya sends her a wary grin.

“You’re scary,” he says.  “Remind me to stay on your good side.”

“Remind yourself,” Yuzu grumbles back.  “It’s ridiculous, though! Sora’s our student!  And we don’t even get to know what his condition is after that?”

“I, the man Gongenzaka, whole-heartedly agree,” Gongenzaka says.  “That duel was certainly a rough one for both of them.”

The three fall silent, then, not quite wanting to think about the duel that had left Sora in this condition to begin with.

“Who was that?” Yuzu whispers.  “I didn’t know LDS had people like that.  And...they almost seemed to know each other.”

Yuya shifts nervously, and she glances up.  

“I saw him before,” he says.

“You what?  When?” Yuzu says.

“At the harbor, while I was training with Sora,” he says.  He starts to play with his goggles, pulling them on and off of his hair.  “He was...well, I thought he was with you. Or someone who looked like you.”

“Huh?  Someone who looks like me?”

“Yeah, it was weird.  But that Kurosaki guy, he was kind of scary.  He and Sora started kind of...arguing, I guess?  I didn’t really get it. And that girl that looked like you, she didn’t seem to like Fusion at all.  She was almost mad at me for bringing it up.”

He bites his lip.

“I saw her another time, too.  Both times, she called me ‘Yuto.’  And when she saw that I was using Fusion, she said there was no way I could be ‘Yuto.’”

They all fall silent again.

“What is Sora involved with?” Yuzu asks, her voice quiet.

“It seems something else is afoot here,” Gongenzaka says.  “We need to talk to him.”

“We’re not going to get in so easily,” Yuya says, looking at the guards, who are starting to whisper amongst themselves now.

Yuzu clenches her fists.  What is with this tournament?  What is going on here? What was wrong with Sora in that duel?  It was like he turned into a whole different person.

“I’m tired of waiting,” Yuzu hisses.  “You guys, cover me. I’m going to give Akaba Reiji a piece of my mind.”

Yuya opens his mouth, and she’s not sure if he’s trying to argue or not, but Yuzu marches away before he can stop her.

She’s never been too far into LDS for obvious reasons, but it stands to reason that the director’s office would be on the top floor.  She stalks down the halls until she finds an elevator, slips inside, and hits the highest button. She folds her arms, then and waits, drumming her fingers against her arms.  She’s so tired of this. Of everything. Of all of the weird things happening all the time now. It all started with that...Pendulum stuff.

Her Pendulum, speaking of which, seems to warm against her chest, and curious, she wraps her fingers around it.  It’s as cold and metallic as ever. But then the elevator makes a stop at a floor on the way up, and the doors slide open.

Yuzu tries not to look at the person coming on, so that she doesn’t look too suspicious.  She just looks straight ahead at nothing, like she’s supposed to be here.

She doesn’t look, until she hears the other one choke on a gasp.  Her eyes flicker in spite of herself.

For just a second, she thinks _does this elevator have a mirror on the wall?_

The next second, she’s staring into magenta eyes the same shape as hers, with the same eyelashes, perched over the exact same nose and lips, and even the part of her hair is the same, and their eyes are perfectly aligned at the exact same height.  Only her hair, much longer than Yuzu’s and darker, and her clothes, an LDS uniform, are different.

For a long moment, Yuzu doesn’t think she can breathe.

“Who are you?” they both say at the exact same time.


	25. R U R I / Y U Z U

t h e 

      f u n 

            h a s 

                  o n l y 

                        j u s t 

b e g u n

* * *

 

She’s seen Hiragi Yuzu before, in her duel against Masumi.  But this is different. It’s almost terrifying, seeing the planes of her own face, perfectly mirrored in another human being just feet in front of her.  She parts and wears her hair differently, and actually, it’s a different color from her own, but the face is the same shape, the same size, her shoulders are exactly the same as Ruri’s, and it’s...it’s _ wrong _ , it makes her skin shiver as though someone’s just walked over her grave.

“Oh,” Yuzu gasps.  “You must be her! The girl that Yuya said he saw!”

_ Yuya _ .  Ruri turns the name over in her mind, and realizes with a jolt that this must be the name of boy who looks like Yuto.  Her heart breaks all over again remembering that he wasn’t Yuto.

“And you’re Hiragi Yuzu,” Ruri says through a choke voice.

Yuzu jumps, eyes widening.

“How do you know my name?” she asks.

“I saw your duel with Masumi-san.”

Her eyes narrow.  The elevator pulls to a stop at another floor, but when the doors open, neither of them move, and no one else is waiting to get on.

“Who are you?” she asks again, as the doors slide shut.  “What are you...doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing.  You’re in a restricted area, you know,” Ruri says.

“Well so are you!  Wait! You’re not part of LDS, are you?”

“I...suppose.”

Ruri doesn’t know where to even start with this strange rendezvous.  What does she ask first? The girl seems as confused and worked up as Ruri is.

“I’m Ruri,” she says finally. “Kurosaki Ruri.  And I’m—”

The elevator stops again, and the doors open.  There is, once again, no one waiting outside. What button had Ruri hit again? She couldn’t even remember where she was supposed to be headed.

“Why are you back here?” she asks, as the doors close again.

Yuzu glares at her for a moment, suspicious.  She folds her arms, and it feels too eerie to look at her for much longer, so Ruri looks at the back wall instead.

“I’m looking for Akaba Reiji,” she says.  “His goons won’t let me into the hospital to check on my friend.”

“Your...friend?”

“The one who was hurt during the duel today.  If you saw my duel, you must have seen his, too.”

Ruri thinks about it for half a breath.  Then her frazzled thoughts sway back into line, and she remembers why she was going downstairs.  Her brother’s duel. The Academia agent. Shiunin Sora, unconscious and now under LDS custody. 

She had wanted to speak with him.

Her eyes flit back to Yuzu with a renewed suspicion, and Yuzu’s eyes narrow back at her.

“He’s your...friend?”

She shivers in spite of herself, nervous.  She saw Yuzu’s duel. The girl uses Fusions.  Shiunin Sora is registered as a member of her duel school, and he’s confirmed as an Academia agent.  Is this doppelganger of hers...an enemy? Is her visage somehow a trap?

Ruri tries to swallow away her panic. Yuzu looks frustrated, confused even, but not aggressive.  Perhaps she doesn’t know that Ruri is from XYZ. Perhaps Ruri can learn more about Yuto from her and Shiunin.

“Oh,” she says finally.  “Well...I suppose I can help you there, then.”

* * *

Yuya and Gongenzaka are gone when Yuzu storms back over to the hospital wing door with Kurosaki Ruri.  Both guards straighten up.

“Where did they go?” she demands.

“Sorry, miss, we had to ask them to leave, it’s getting late,” one of them starts.

“It’s not appropriate to loiter around here,” the other speaks at nearly the same time.

Ruri walks in front of Yuzu then, and holds up a badge at them.  Immediately, both of them stop talking.

“Akaba-san needs me to check on him,” Ruri says.  “Can we go in?”

“But she’s...”

“She’s with me,” Ruri says, and gives them a sweet smile.

They hesitate, and Yuzu shoots Ruri a glance.  She doesn’t know what to make of this girl that could be her twin and her strange access to LDS badges, and she feels the guards don’t know what to think either, as they keep looking back and forth between them.  Still, as odd and eerie as Ruri is, she’s getting Yuzu in to check on Sora. Yuzu pulls out her Duel Disk to send Yuya a text to let him know.

After another beat, they both shrug, and the door slides open.  Ruri bobs a smiling bow at the two of them, and they pass through the doors.  Yuzu hurries before they can change their mind.

“Thank you,” she says stiffly, despite still feeling nervous around this girl.  “I was worried about him.”

Ruri hesitates in the dark room, and her eyes glint from the single flickering light.  There’s something cautious there, like she’s a bird getting ready to bolt at the slightest movement.

“I know what it feels like to worry about someone,” she says, carefully, evenly, as though she’s testing to see the effect of the words on Yuzu.

Yuzu doesn’t have time to interpret, though.  She walks quickly into the small room. It looks more like a nurse’s office than a hospital, and most of the beds along the walls are empty.  Only the one in the back corner has a lump in it. Heart quickening, Yuzu hurries forward.

“Sora?” she whispers.  She didn’t think about what she would do if he was asleep.  “Sora, are you there?”

There’s a faint shifting of sheets, and as Yuzu approaches, a tiny body shivers in the bed.  Sora’s eyes half crack, and his lips part. He looks dizzy when his head turns slightly towards Yuzu.

“Yuzu?” he says.  He squints. “Am I...seeing double, or are there two of you?”

Yuzu jolts, and looks up to see that Ruri is standing right next to her.

“Um, a little space?” she says.

“I wasn’t lying before.  I needed to talk to him.”

“Okay, well he’s hurt, so give him a second,” Yuzu says.  “Hey, Sora, how are you doing?”

Sora squints at the two of them.  He doesn’t look fully there quite yet.  

“What are you doing here?” he finally says.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay,” Yuzu says.  “You had a really bad accident out there...”

Sora’s eyes blink further awake, and he looks almost surprised.  His eyes linger on Yuzu for a moment, mouth open without speaking.  Then his eyes slide back to Ruri, and his gaze narrows.

“Wait,” he says.  He tries to struggle to a sitting position.  Yuzu puts her hands on his shoulders, but he shrugs her off.  “I know you. You were with  _ him _ .”

Ruri tenses, and Yuzu shoots a glance at her.  Sora is giving Ruri a dagger filled gaze, a face that still looks so eerie on his normally cheery, cherubic expression.

“I had a question for you,” Ruri says stiffly.

“Where is he?” Sora asks, fighting off Yuzu’s hands again to sit forward.  “Where’s Kurosaki?”

Kurosaki...?  Oh!

It dawns on Yuzu in pieces, and she turns to stare at Ruri.  Kurosaki Shun— Sora’s opponent yesterday.

Kurosaki Ruri— the girl beside her right now.

“You’re related?” Yuzu blurts.

Sora’s eyes jolt at Yuzu, and then back to Ruri.

“Your brother, huh?  You’ll know where he is, then.  Where is he? Our duel isn’t over.”

“I’d consider it over,” Ruri says, with a venom that startles Yuzu.  “You should worry more about your injuries.”

“If you don’t tell me where he is, I’ll hunt him down myself,” Sora spits.  “It’s not like it’s  _ hard _ , hunting down XYZ scum—”

Before Yuzu can make a move, Ruri is on him.  Sora lets out an indignant screech as Ruri grabs the collar of his shirt and almost lifts him off the bed.  He struggles, clawing at her hands and then going at her face, but she shakes him so that he can’t get a grip on her.  Yuzu almost screams.

“Let him go!  Oh my god, put him down, what are you doing?” she screams, trying to grab Ruri’s hands and yank them off.

“You think it’s  _ funny _ ?” Ruri shouts in Sora’s face. “You think it’s funny to hunt us like we’re  _ animals _ ?”

Yuzu yanks Ruri free of Sora and for a moment, they fumble with each other, hands batting and scratching at each other’s arms.

“He’s hurt!! Leave him alone!!”

Ruri manages to slap her across the face and Yuzu reels with shock.  She can’t remember ever being actually struck before, and it stuns her for a moment.  When she comes back to herself, Ruri is looking at her own hands in horror. Then she looks at Yuzu and a panicked, angry anxiety contorts her face.

“You’re  _ defending _ him,” Ruri says.  “Do you have any idea what he’s done?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!  But I’m not about to let you  _ assault _ my friend!”

Is— is she crying?  Tears are rolling down Ruri’s cheeks, and she’s trembling as though she’s about to melt into a puddle of panic.  Sora coughs behind them, getting air back after Ruri grabbed hold of him. Yuzu moves herself in between the two of them, heart hammering.

Ruri gasps.  Her shoulders shake with each breath.

And then she bolts.

Yuzu feels something in her crack with the shock of it all as Ruri simply turns and runs out of the room, shoving through the door and disappearing.  Yuzu waits, shivering. What just happened?

And then Sora is running past her.  Her heart jolts again.

“Wait!” she shouts, trying to grab his wrist, but he’s too fast.  He’s out the door, smacking past the guards who are looking in with surprise.  “Sora!!”

Oh god, where is he going?  What is going on?

Panic choking her, Yuzu runs, too.


	26. S O R A / Y U Z U

**So I guess**

**we’re all believing**

**that’s all we have left after all**

* * *

It hurts to run, but it’s hurt worse before.  Sora pumps his arms a little harder, trying to keep up with the fleeing, shadowy shape ahead of him.  His lungs burn, and his ribs ache with every breath. He’s probably bruised the bones there. Still, he keeps running.

_ I won’t let you get away.  I won’t let any of you get away!  If I’m still alive, that means I can’t have lost! _

Despite his training, he’s starting to flag.  It’s starting to get too hard to breathe past the pain in his chest and he doesn’t know how much longer he can run.  His heart screams in his ears along with the sickly anxiety that clings to his insides and chokes him like slime.

But the girl seems to be slowing down, too, and as the ground changes from concrete to grass as they bolt into a park, the XYZ girl is stumbling to a stop, gasping and choking for breath.  She whirls, though, Duel Disk up and eyes alight with fury. His skin crawls with anticipation. Her eyes are like that of a wild, cornered animal, and he can sense the encroaching battle will be a furious one.  Good. He needs...he needs a hard battle, to win, so that he can erase what happened before.

After all, he’s still breathing.  That must mean that he hasn’t lost.

He activates his own disk.

“Where’s your brother?” he says.

“You’ll have to kill me before you find out,” she hisses back.

That’s more like it.  All of his duels in this dimension have been horribly boring, with the other party expecting a game or a performance.  This will be one with higher stakes.

His body twinges with pain from his ankles up to his head when he lifts his arms, and he tries to keep the wince out of his face.

“If I win, you’ll have to tell me where your big brother is,” he says.

“If I win, you’ll have to tell me where Yuto is,” she snaps back.

He blinks.  Yuto? Who’s that?

“Is that your boyfriend?  Did we card him or something?”

The girl’s eyes alight with rage.  A sudden, nervous sickness falls over Sora.  She looks...just like Yuzu. She looks like  _ Yuzu _ , staring at him with so much unbridled anger and hate.  An uncomfortable feeling, like walking through a spiderweb, settles over his shoulders as he thinks: if Yuzu knew what he was, she might look at him like that too.  For some reason, that makes him upset.

He shoves the feeling away, however.  He’s a soldier of Academia, and he’s going to have a chance to finally show his worth by taking out some XYZ scum.  He doesn’t have the time or space to worry anything else.

“I’ll go first,” he says.  “I summon Edge Imp Tomahawk!  By its effect, I can discard one Edge Imp monster to deal eight hundred damage!”

He tossed his card into the graveyard and the girl winced, shying back from the electricity that pulsed out of her disk from the attack.  The girl recovers quickly, however, planting both feet as she draws.

“As I control no monsters, I can special summon Lyrical Luscinia - Turquoise Warbler from my hand.”

The small bird girl appears on the field in front of her, flapping its arm wings and twittering.

“When Turquoise Warbler is special summoned, I can special summon another Winged Beast monster to the field, so I choose Cobalt Sparrow!”

A second, darker colored bird girl joins the first.  Sora snorts. Both level one, with only one hundred or  _ zero _ attack?  He’s surprised this girl survived the invasion of XYZ.

“Cobalt Sparrow lets me add a winged beast to my hand,” she continues, adding a card from her deck to her hand.  “And since I control a winged beast, Sapphire Sparrow can special summon itself, and another winged beast from my hand!”

A blue bird appears this time, letting out a happy tune.

“You and your brother are similar,” Sora says.  “You both like to fill the field with weakling birds!”

The girl’s lips tighten.

“I overlay all four of my monsters to XYZ summon,” she says.  The air prickles with sparkle as the shining gate appears on the ground below them, and each bird girl turns to gold light and swirls inside. “Birds with beautiful wings and melodic voices, come together in chorus!  XYZ Summon! Sing, Lyrical Luscinia - Recital Starling!”

The bird woman rises up out of the starry summon gate as though it were made of it, its wings studded with sparkling stars and its intricate costume shining bright.  Still, it’s only a zero attack monster. Is she trying to act cool?

“When Recital Starling is summoned, I can give one monster on the field attack equal to three hundred times the number of materials used to summon her.  She has four materials, so that means twelve hundred attack.”

“Big deal!” Sora says.  “Tomahawk has eighteen hundred attack!”

The girl actually smirks.  Sora feels nerves tighten his spine.

“I’m giving that attack to Tomahawk,” she says, pointing at Sora’s own monster.

Sora’s mouth drops open, as Recital Starling lifts her wings, and four stars come cascading down around his monster, causing it to grow in size.  Its attack jumps up to three thousand.

“Are you stupid?” he says, almost laughing.  “Are you just trying to kill yourself?”

“I then activate an Equip Spell from my hand,” she says, without missing a beat.  “I equip Nettle Veil to Recital Starling!”

Recital Starling lets out a melodic cry as a thorny looking veil settles over her back and wings.

“As long as this is equipped, Recital Starling cannot be destroyed by battle,” she says.  “Recital Starling, attack Edge Imp Tomahawk! Starlight Requiem!”

She’s attacking  _ him _ ?  Sora’s confidence melts as he realizes that she absolutely has to have a plan, no one is this stupid.  But he doesn’t have any way to stop her attack! 

The bird woman lifts her head and lets out a horrifying screech, which solidifies into visible rings of sound that strike against his monster.  It doesn’t break, holding firm against the attack while Recital Starling shies back from the reflected attack, screaming in pain. Sora’s heart hammers — it looks like  _ she’s  _ the one hurt, so why...

He winces as suddenly, the attack hits him, and both he and her are dropping to their knees at the reverberating sound that cascades around them.

Dizzy from the sound still clattering in his head, Sora looks down at his disk to see that both of their life points have dropped to one thousand.  A suicide attack?

“R-Recital Starling deals to you the same damage I would have taken,” she says through grit teeth.  “I set a card and end my turn.”

Sora’s ears roared with anger.  The way she set this up, it wouldn’t matter what he did, if he attacked with  _ anything _ , they’d simply both be taken out at once!

“If you give up and tell me where I can find Yuto, then we can call off the duel,” she says.  “We won’t have to hurt each other anymore.

Sora’s blood boils.

“Are you trying to go  _ easy _ on me?” he snaps. 

He struggles to his feet, and immediately stumbles.  He feels sick to his stomach and everything aches. The pain of his injuries from the last duel are starting to wear down on him and it’s hard to stand.  But he’s not going to lose...he’s not going to lose!

“My turn!  I draw!”

“Sora!!”

He hesitates in spite of himself at the sound of his name, eyes flickering over his shoulder.  

Yuzu is stumbling into the park, looking red-faced and winded.  Her eyes flicker between him and the girl, but then she runs right to Sora’s side.  He doesn’t realize how weak his legs are until she grabs hold of his shoulders to steady him.

“Please, you’re hurt,” she begs.  “Please, just stop, Sora, it’s okay, you don’t have to prove anything.”

His blood boils again.  With an angry grunt, he flings her hands off of him.

“Stay out of this, Yuzu!  You have no idea what’s going on!”

“I don’t need to!  I’m not going to stand here and watch you get hurt!”

_ Why do you  _ care??

Sora shoves her back again angrily, his head rushing.

“Just stay back!  I’m going to win!”

He whirls on the other girl and plays his next card.

“By discarding one Edge Imp from my deck, I can make Tomahawk treated as the same name!  I discard Edge Imp Saw!”

When he discards the card, Tomahawk makes an eerie clicking noise, and the edges of the axes suddenly look toothed like a saw.

“Then I activate Frightfur Fusion to fuse Tomahawk with the Fluffal Leo in my hand!”

He clasps his hands together as the energy pulses through his Duel Disk, swirling the two monsters together.

“Steel blades possessed by demons!  Become one with the fanged beast and show us a new form and power! Fusion summon!  King of the hundred beasts that tear everything to pieces — Frightfur Leo!”

He takes some pleasure in the fear that flickers over the girl’s face when his monster punches through the fusion gate, snarling and whirring with the saws that rip through the stuffed animal skin.  Leo looms over his head with an angry whirr of saws, leering at Recital Starling.

“Once per turn, Leo can destroy one monster on the field!  Cut that stupid bird to pieces, Leo!”

Frightfur Leo’s saws glow with a plasmic poison, and it roars.  The saws whirl out of it in glowing pulses of energy, slicing Recital Starling into bits.  The girl throws her arms up over her face to shield herself from the smoke.

“When Nettle Veil is sent to the graveyard, I can deal one hundred points of damage per material attached to its equipped monster!”

Sora winces at the thorns that rain over him, chunking his life points down to six hundred.  Dammit! If only Leo could have attacked this turn! At least he’s prevented her from using her double knockout strategy.  He’ll have to bide his time for now.

“I’ll end my turn — you’d better defend yourself fast!” he shouts.

The girl’s lips curl, and she stands straight, getting ready to draw.

_ “Intrustion Penalty, 2000 Life Points.” _

Both Sora and the girl flinch at the sound of the crackling electricity as another Duel Disk forces its way into the duel.  Yuzu moves forward, edging herself half in between Sora and the girl.

“No way,” she says.  “I’m not letting my friends get hurt anymore!”

Sora wants to shout at her.  To shove her out of the way. How dare she get in the way of his duel!

But his body feels so heavy, and...and he’s not sure what this panicky feeling passing through him is.  So he bites his tongue, and says nothing.

* * *

Yuzu draws, twisting the card into her hand elegantly.  Sora is hurt, and he can’t handle this duel! He can hardly stand up, and Ruri isn’t even holding back!  It’s unacceptable! She’ll have to knock some sense into both of them!

First, Ruri, though.

“I set the Pendulum Scale with Scale 1 Adagio, the Melodious Minstrel, and Scale 2 Tempo, the Melodious Minstrel!”

Ruri’s eyes narrow as Yuzu’s twin Pendulums take to the stage, rising up in their pillars of light.

“You can’t special summon anything with a scale like that,” she says.

Yuzu’s heart quickens.  So Ruri knows about Pendulum summoning — of course she does.  Still, Yuzu isn’t about to be cowed.

“Tempo’s effect activates!  If I have a Melodious in my other Pendulum zone, I can make it a scale ten for this turn!”

Tempo strikes its tuning rod with a twittering sound, and its scale rises up to ten.  Yuzu withdraws her ace, ready to take this duel over.

“I Pendulum Summon Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight!”

In a storm of flowers, her monster appears, landing lightly and tipping the brim of her hat at Ruri.  She brandishes her rapier and waits for another command.

“This is the end!” Yuzu says.  “You only have one thousand life points!  Bloom Bard, attack directly!”

Bloom Bard crouches, and then explodes forward.  The rapier glints as it slashes down towards Ruri— 

“Trap card open!” she shouts.  “XYZ Requiem!”

Bloom Bard is buffeted back by the wind that explodes from the trap card, flying backwards.

“If I have an XYZ Winged Beast monster in my Graveyard, I can special summon another one from my Extra Deck of the same rank, attaching any equivalent cards from the Graveyard as material!”

The ground beneath them turns black and gold, as the materials swirl into the XYZ gate.  A peculiar prickle runs down Yuzu’s arms, making every hair stand on end and her mouth go dry.

“Birds with beautiful wings! Gather on the battlefield and take brilliant flight!  XYZ Summon! Dance in the sky — Rank 1, Lyrical Luscinia - Assembled Nightingale!”

In a ray of brilliant light, the being emerges.  Yuzu gasps, awed in spite of herself. The creature is  _ beautiful _ , her wings a kaleidoscope of pastel colors, eyes sparkling, as elegant as calligraphy.  There’s music when she ruffles her feathers, like the jingling of bells.

And then her heart clenches up, and it’s suddenly hard to breathe.  She feels like her vision is blacking out around the edges, until all she can see is Assembled Nightingale.  What is this...strange sense of nostalgia washing over her? Deja vu hits her like a truck, as though somehow she’s been here in front of this monster before, despite never having seen it in her life.

“Assembled Nightingale gains two hundred attack for every material attached to it,” Ruri says, and the words come out somehow choked.  “She has five materials, so that’s one thousand attack points!”

Yuzu catches the glimmer of the other bird girls, flashing briefly in the reflection of Assembled Nightingale’s wings and the stars that encircle her.  The attack point counter on her Duel Disk clicks upwards.

“I can still easily take you on!” Yuzu says.  “Bloom Bard, attack!”

Bloom Bard takes another swing, but Assembled Nightingale raises up her wings and blocks, as though her feathers are made of steel.

“By detaching one XYZ material, I can prevent Assembled Nightingale’s destruction, and I take no battle damage this turn!” Ruri says.

_ Damn! _ Yuzu thinks.  She’s good. Gritting her teeth, she sets a card, and hits the end turn button.

“Why didn’t you summon that to start?” Sora snaps suddenly, causing both girls to look at him.  He’s red in the face, and shaking, through whether it’s from pain or rage Yuzu isn’t sure. “Were you underestimating me from the start?!”

Ruri’s lips curl.

“I have no reason to use my full power against someone’s who’s already beaten,” she says.

Sora’s eyes flash with rage.

“I’ll show you, you bitch!” he shouts.

“Sora, calm down!” Yuzu says, trying to grab his arm, but he yanks himself away. “Why — why are you so angry?  Do you know her?”

“I know she’s nothing but XYZ scum!” Sora shouts.  “I know that she’s the kind of insect that we should have squashed a long time ago, and she’s going to regret underestimating me!”

“Sora, you’re talking like a crazy person!”

Panic latches onto Yuzu’s stomach, and she already has trouble thinking over the thick deju vu that fogs her mind even now.

“You think we’re just bugs to be killed?” Ruri screams back.  “You’re just like all of them! Treating hunting us like a game!”

“That’s because it  _ is _ a game,” Sora snaps.  “You runaways from your dimension — you’re the real cowards for running from us!”

Hunting game?  Dimension? Yuzu’s head spins.

“I’ll show you the real power of Fusion Summoning,” Sora says, drawing from his deck.  “You’re going to regret not getting hunted down back in XYZ!”

A glow mists over his body, and he freezes in the middle of his draw.

“Hey — wait!” he says.

The glow gets thicker, almost completely concealing him.

“Sora!” Yuzu screams, reaching for him.

“I’m not ready to go back!” Sora shouts.

Yuzu’s hand swipes for him — and hits air.  Sora has vanished, right before her eyes. Yuzu stares at the nothing before her, hand shaking.  What...what’s going on? She doesn’t even know where to begin.

She hears the click of Ruri’s tongue, and whirls.

“Well?” Ruri says.  “Will you continue in his place?”

Yuzu can’t think, or breathe.  And yet...even in the confusion, she sees something pass over Ruri’s face.  Something like relief, slumping her shoulders and making her droop.

“What happened to Sora?” she says, her voice thin even to her.

“Seems like he revealed too much.  His superiors forced him to come back.”

Superiors?  Yuzu feels dizzy.  This is all too much, and she doesn’t know where to start.

“You’re still here, though,” Ruri says, her voice sounding hollow.  “So are you one of them? Are you going to fight me, too?”

Bloom Bard shifts, and Yuzu looks up.  Her monster’s eyes are trained on Assembled Nightingale with such a sentient focus that it makes her want to take a step back.  She looks at Ruri again.

Her face is the same as Yuzu’s.  But...but something is different.  She looks exhausted. Like she’s going to pass out on her feet right there.

Yuzu turns off her Duel Disk, and Bloom Bard fizzles from sight.

“I just want to know what’s going on,” she begs.

Ruri’s lips part.  Her eyes widen. And then her shoulders slump.  Her knees wobble.

Yuzu moves forward before she can think about it.  She runs straight through Assembled Nightingale as that hologram, too, disappears, and catches Ruri in both hands, carefully lowering both of them to the ground.

“You really don’t know?” Ruri says, sounding wondering.  “You’re so lucky.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m tired.  That’s all.”

Ruri pulls back, out of Yuzu’s grip.  Her eyes are so heavy, ringed with dark circles.

“Here’s the truth, then,” she whispers.  “There is more than the world you know. There are four dimensions, each based around the main summoning types.”

Yuzu’s heart quickens.  How is — that’s not true, is it?  But the way Ruri and Sora were talking to each other....

“You’re from XYZ, and Sora’s from Fusion?” she says.

“You’re a fast learner,” Ruri says with a hollow laugh.  She runs a hand through her hair, working out some of the tangles from her bun.  “Fusion’s soldiers invaded my homeland, XYZ. They...they hurt so many. I came here to find Yuto, my friend.  He went missing.”

“He looks like Yuya,” Yuzu guesses.  “Yuya says he saw you, and that you called him Yuto.”

Ruri looks down at her knees.

“I won’t give up on him,” she says, voice choked.  “I can’t give up.”

Now that she’s not her opponent, Ruri looks so small.  Yuzu reaches for her her hand automatically, cupping it.

“You don’t want to fight, do you?”

Ruri gives Yuzu a teary smile.

“I’ve never wanted to,” she says. “But there’s nothing else left.”

Yuzu opens her mouth, though what she plans to say disappears.

Because in that moment, a light explodes out of the air itself, and there’s a roaring sound of a humming vehicle.  Yuzu gasps, and Ruri flinches to her feet, and then the screech of wheels fills the air and stops, leaving an echo behind.

When Yuzu’s eyes clear, there’s someone in the park who wasn’t there before.  Smoke rises from the back of her bike, wavering over her figure. She hunches over her bike for a moment, gasping. 

Then she grabs the helmet from her head, and flings it to the ground.

Yuzu chokes as she sees yet another face like hers staring out at her.

“All right,” she spits.  “About time I finally found you, bitch.”


	27. S H U N / Y U Z U / ???

Believe me now, darling

      This is where it all begins.

**I never didn’t believe**

**you.**

* * *

“What’s going on?  What’s this alarm shit?”

The way that Reiji’s face immediately closes up when he sees who it is makes Shun immediately uneasy.  There are people running about like chickens with their heads lopped off in the control room, a bunch of camera feeds set up all over the screens, and he’s heard the guards in the rooms downstairs saying something about some code.  Reiji’s reaction implies that he didn’t want Shun to know about it. Shun tenses. He never really trusted this guy, and only went along with him for Ruri’s sake. But if this is the part where he betrays them...

“We had Shiunin Sora in custody for a few hours,” Reiji says finally, after his face seems to go through three lowkey emotions in quick succession.

“ _Had_?” Shun says, immediately bristling.  “You let him get away?”

Reiji’s lips press together, and he turns around in his chair back to his main control screen.

“Your sister decided to try and interrogate him without informing me,” Reiji says.  “He escaped when she left the door open.”

Shun’s anger immediately fades to a cold terror.  He grabs the back of Reiji’s chair.

“Ruri!  Is she all right?  Did he hurt her?”

“As far as I know, she’s fine,” Reiji says, his voice as frustratingly monotone as always, as though he doesn’t even _care_.  “Both of them seem to have fled, and I’m not sure if he was chasing her, or the other way around.  We’re still trying to locate them.”

“Well locate them faster, dammit!  Don’t you give a shit? That’s my sister!”

“Kurosaki,” Reiji says, his voice cutting and firm all at once.  “I am doing the best I can.”

Shun doesn’t care.  He wants to grab him by his stupid scarf and choke him with it.  Ruri’s in trouble! He has to find her first! He turns towards the door he came in through.

“Where are you going?”

“To find my sister!”

“I don’t think that would be wise.”

“You don’t have a damn idea what it’s like to lose someone you care about, do you?” Shun spits.  “You don’t care about individuals at all! Is Ruri just collateral to you?”

Reiji turns in his chair, grabbing Shun with his gaze and holding it.

“Kurosaki,” he says, through tight lips.  His face is white, and his hands are clutched together so tightly that the bones seem to be poking through his knuckles.  “I am doing _the best I can to find her._ ”

Shun can’t let go of the panic, or the anger at Reiji for trying to act calm.  But he pulls back. Just a little. Hands tightening into fists. Tries to take a deep breath, like Ruri is always telling him to do.

“What direction did they go in?” he says through his teeth.  He still doesn’t trust Reiji worth a damn, but this is Ruri at stake here.  And Reiji has the best chance of finding her.

“They went south from LDS, but I’m having trouble with my systems,” Reiji says.  “I think Shiunin Sora may have some kind of jammer in his disk that he’s activated now that he’s been found out, and it’s taking us time to write a code that will overcome in.”

He turns back to his desk and begins to type out a sequence in his computer.  Shun chafes at the pace. He turns on his own Duel Disk and hits the button to call Ruri.  It rings, but she doesn’t pick up. Panic assaults him, turns his knees to jelly. What is he supposed to do if he loses her?  How will he hold it together without her? If after all this time, she just disappears?

“Reiji-sama!  We’ve located them; they’re in Domino Park!”

The screens flicker, and a dark image, illuminated by streetlights, comes into view.  For a moment, Shun can’t see anything. But then he starts to pick out familiar details.  He catches the curve of Ruri’s hair, the glint of a pair of eyes in the shadow of the amphitheater behind them, the shapes of people.

“Turn up the contrast,” Reiji orders, and his minions hop to comply.

Shun swears.  Ruri’s disk is already activated, Assembled Nightingale at her side.  There’s no sign of Sora, but there’s another shape facing across from Ruri, a monster at that girl’s side too.  Shun can’t quite tell who it is from behind, but Reiji jiggles the view. Shun swallows. The girl looks exactly like Ruri.  It’s like she has a twin, and it sends spikes of eerie uncanny valley through him.

“Hiragi Yuzu?” Reiji says, sounding surprised.

Shun’s seen enough.  He turns and bolts for the elevator out.

“Kurosaki!  Where do you think you’re going?” Reiji calls after him.

“Don’t tell me to abandon her, _Akaba_ , because I won’t listen,” Shun shoots back.

He smacks the button on the elevator and he is away.  His heart hammers in his throat. Please let him get there in time.

* * *

Yuzu gapes at the new girl, the second one she’s seen today with her own face.  And is that a _motorcycle?_  Where did she even come from?  She hadn’t heard the sound of the motorcycle before.

The girl’s eyes seem focused on Ruri, but when Yuzu makes a sound in the back of her throat, of nerves and shock, the girl’s eyes flicker towards her.  Her angry face drops to surprise, gaping back at Yuzu. Her eyes flick back and forth between the two of them for a moment.

“There’s _two_ of you fuckers?” she says.  “What kind of sick joke is this?  You think it’s funny, wearing my face?”

“You’re the one wearing mine,” Ruri says, lips curling.

“Shut up!” the girl says, both hands lifting up in fists.  “It must have been one of you, right? There can’t be _that_ many girls that look like me!  So which one of you took him!”

Yuzu fumbles for words, but Ruri lifts her duel disk defensively.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she says.  “But I haven’t forgotten that you attacked my brother in Heartland, so you’d better not try anything!”

“Heartland?” the girl says.  Then she shakes her head wildly as though to shake herself back to clear thoughts.  “Stop saying things that make no sense! If you won’t tell me who took him, I’ll have to duel it out of you!”

She flings her leg back over her motorcycle, and revs it.  Yuzu’s head spins as she tries to pull together all of her thoughts.  There’s a third girl that looks like her. Ruri told her about other dimensions.  This girl must be from another dimension. And she’s...she’s looking for someone, someone who was taken away.

Just like...Ruri.

“Wait,” Yuzu croaks through her dry throat.  “Wait!”

“You’ll see what you get for siding with Fusion!” Ruri shouts, turning on her own Duel Disk.

The green haired girl jams her helmet back onto her head and then hits the gas.  Ruri swears, and has to leap to the side when the girl explodes past her, almost running her over.

“I’m going first!” the cyclist shouts, taking her motorcycle around in a circle.  “I control no monsters, so I can special summon Windwitch - Ice Bell from my hand!”

The air sparkles, and a frigid wind passes over the park as the pretty girl with the bouncy hair, flying on a broom that had a bell instead of bristles, appears zooming beside the cyclist.

“When Ice Bell is special summoned, I can special summon one Windwitch from my hand or deck!  Come out, Glass Bell!”

A second witch girl with bobbed hair appears, giggling and bouncing up and down in the air.

“And when my girls take to the field, they’ll deal you five hundred points of damage!” she shouts.  “That’s one thousand points of damage, so take it!”

Ruri flinches when the two witches spin their brooms and an icy cold wind rips over the field, cutting down to the bone with the chill.  The witches giggle and zoom back to fly alongside Rin, looking for all the world like they were real people having fun rather than holograms.

“All right!” the cyclist says, as though responding to some invisible voice.  “Don’t worry, we’ll take her down, girls! Glass Bell tunes Ice Bell for a Synchro Summon!”

The short-haired witch melts into a sequence of glowing green gates, and the cyclist zooms around Ruri in another wide circle as the other witch turns into stars, passing through the gates.  Yuzu inhales. A Synchro summoner! Ruri is an XYZ summoner, and Yuzu is...well, she’s not sure what she counts as. But it matches Ruri’s story about the four dimensions, too!

“Wait!” she cries again, but they can’t hear her over the roar of the motorcycle.  “You guys! Don’t fight! You’re both —”

“Midwinter wind!  Make ice and snow my power and blow through!  Synchro Summon!” the cyclist shouts. “Appear! Level 7!  Windwitch - Winter Bell!”

Yuzu’s further cries die in her throat when the monster emerges.  Oh, she thinks with another startling shiver of familiarity. It’s beautiful.

The creature seems to be carved from the very essence of winter, in sea glass shards of pale green and icy white.  It glitters like spun jewels and bends the light from the street lamp in prisms that scatter over the dark grass. The nostalgia is almost choking Yuzu, and she has to clutch at her throat and remind herself to breathe.  When it lets out a glittering cry, it sounds alive, more alive than a hologram has any right to be.

“When Winter Bell is summoned, I can deal damage equal to the level of one of my Windwitches in the Graveyard times two hundred!  Take another cool eight hundred damage courtesy of Glass Bell!”

Winter Bell glows, and a ghostly image of Glass Bell, as though projected through her like a prism, appears inside the glass.  It melts into another icy wind that cuts Ruri’s life points down to twenty two hundred.

“I set a card and end my turn!”

Ruri tenses as the cyclist roars past her again, but this time, she doesn’t dodge, and the cyclist almost grazes her, sending her hair aflight like wild wings.

“My turn!” she shouts.  “I control no monsters either, so I can special summon Turquoise Warbler!”

Ruri flicks through a swift series of special summons, until her field is full of matching bird girls who twitter and hum.

“I overlay my monsters to XYZ summon!  Come forth, Assembled Nightingale!”

The familiar monster appears with a shining glitter of light, and Yuzu’s heart squeezes even harder.  It is suddenly incredibly hard to breathe. She clutches at her chest, and tries to stumble towards their battle, but it’s all she can do to stay standing.  Why does she feel so dizzy? Why does it feel like her very soul is starting to crack in hairline splinters, like she was frozen over and is suddenly beginning to thaw?

Through the haze of dizziness, Yuzu sees that Ruri is starting to gasp for breath too.  She reaches for her chest and squeezes her hand into the fabric of her shirt. The cyclist zips around them in a wide circle once again, but her wheels wobble a bit, as though she’s having trouble seeing.

“A-Assembled Nightingale has two hundred attack for each material,” she gasps.  “And it can attack directly once for every material — t-that’s five attacks of a thousand attack each.  It’s over for you!”

Something like an animalistic growl bursts from the cyclist’s throat, somehow crying out over the sound of her bike.

“No it isn’t!” she says, but her voice sounds tight and tense.  “I activate my face down — Winter’s Keen! Your attacking monster is switched to defense mode, and you take damage equal to its original defense points!”

Winter Bell lets out another chiming cry, and a wind courses over the field, forcing Assembled Nightingale to its knees.

“Assembled Nightingale’s original defense is zero, so I’ll be just fine,” Ruri says.  “I set a card and end my turn!”

The cyclist skids her cycle to a stop, digging one heel into the dirt to balance herself.  There’s a strange, heavy presence in the air that makes Yuzu feel like she’s been pushed down into the ground by a heavy gravity, and she clutches at her chest again.  Is she having a heart attack?

The cyclist is gasping for breath.  Her shoulders shake with every motion, and she sounds for a moment like she’s going to throw up.

“I won’t forgive you,” she gasps.  “I won’t forgive you, I won’t forgive you!”

It sounds like it’s not even her voice — and when her head snaps up again, an eerie glow shines from behind her visor.  Yuzu chokes. She darts a look at Ruri, wondering what she thinks about this — and chokes again, because Ruri’s eyes are glowing a bright purple, and her whole body is trembling.

“I won’t forgive you,” she says, in almost the exact same voice as the cyclist.  “I won’t forgive you! I’ll ruin everything!”

The words ring in Yuzu’s head and clog in her throat, as though she wants to scream them too.  She grabs her throat to force it back. What’s happening? What’s going on?

“Please,” she gasps through the pressure.  “Both of you! You need to calm down! You’re fighting — you’re fighting the wrong people!”

Neither of them are listening.  The cyclist reaches for her duel disk.

“Ruri!” Yuzu screams.  “You said you didn’t want to fight anymore!  Didn’t you say that??”

Ruri shakes, but she doesn’t look at Yuzu.  Her eyes are fixed on the cyclist. She takes a step towards her.  Assembled Nightingale and Winter Bell both cry out with almost the same, eerie sound — and it sounds, almost, as though they are egging both girls on.

Yuzu has to stop them.

Gasping for air, she lifts her arm up with difficulty, fighting against the gravity that has her ensnared.

_“Intrusion Penalty, two thousand life points.”_

Both pairs of glowing eyes snap to the intruder, and Yuzu gasps again.  She stands her ground, though even as her knees shake, pulling her hand.  

“M-my turn,” she gasps.

If they won’t listen, then she has to try and break through to them.  But how? She can hardly see for the swimming in her vision. It’s too much.  It feels like she’s falling apart. Pain skitters through her chest and it’s hard to breathe.  What’s going on? It wasn’t like this until...until their monsters both appeared.

Yuzu’s eyes fall to Bloom Bard.  She...she has the hand for it. She could summon Bloom Bard easily.  Her fingers hover over the card. It’s the best option for this hand.  God, it’s so hard to think and see. She swallows.

Why is she hesitating?  Why does...why does it feel like someone is grabbing her hand?  Pulling her fingers away from the card? Bloom Bard almost seems to be staring at her from the card art, even though the art has her looking to the side.   _Don’t.  Don’t summon me._

Yuzu swallows.  The whole world seems to be wavering.  If she doesn’t summon Bloom Bard, then...what?

Focus.  She has to focus.  What do her other monsters have to offer?  With difficulty, she looks at each one. There’s a tug, at the base of her stomach, as her eyes flicker through them.  Yes, this is what she needs to do. This is what she can do!

“I set the Pendulum Scale with scale 2, Coro, the Melodious Minstrel, and scale 6, Allegro, the Melodious Minstrel!”

Her monsters take to the glowing stage, and Yuzu fights through the pain and gravity again.

“I Pendulum Summon from my hand, Crystal Rose and Sonata the Melodious Diva!”

Her monsters appear, Sonata spinning around the glittering rose that Masumi left to her.  Yuzu swallows, trying to remember what she’s done before.

"First, I activate Crystal Rose's effect!  I can change its name to one monster in my deck that's needed for a Fusion Summon!  I change it's name to Mozarta, the Melodious Maestra!"

The rose glimmers, and then takes on a mirage like image in its facets of Mozarta.  Yuzu brings her hands together, clasping them before her.

“I use the effect of Coro!  Once per turn, I can Fusion Summon using Melodious monsters on my field!  Mozarta and Sonata, combine into one! Fusion Summon — appear, Bloom Diva, the Melodious Choir!”

The swirling lights and melodies that twist around her don’t do her spinning head any favors, and she nearly throws up.  But the pressure doesn’t increase or decrease as Bloom Diva appears in a glow. Her big blue eyes stare impassively at the two agitated monsters before her.

“Allegro’s Pendulum effect,” Yuzu calls.  “I can discard one card, and one monster on the field gains one thousand attack!”

She winces a bit at discarding Bloom Bard, automatically sending it an apology for some reason.  Somehow, though, it makes the pressure around her neck feel a little lighter, as though she’s taken off one of the stones hanging from it.

“I’m giving one thousand attack to Winter Bell!” Yuzu says, pointing.

This seems to startle the cyclist, as she flinches.  The glow in her eyes does not fade, but there seems to be something of her in there again as her jaw slackens.  Winter Bell’s attack raises up to thirty four hundred, and Yuzu braces herself.

“Bloom Diva, attack Winter Bell!”

Bloom Diva inhales sharply.  Then her voice explodes from her throat in a wave of energy, striking against Winter Bell and reflecting right back.

“I take no damage, and Bloom Diva is not destroyed!  You take the damage I would have taken!”

The cyclist flinches, as the wind shatters through Winter Bell and her life points drop.  That’s all Yuzu can do. She hits the button to end her turn, and then staggers towards Ruri.  If she has a chance with either of them, she has a better chance with her!

“My turn!” the cyclist yells.  “I draw!”

She doesn’t even look at the card, playing it onto her motorcycle’s disk as though she already knows what it is.

“I equip Blizzard Wand to my Winter Bell!  I can banish one Windwitch from my Graveyard, and Winter Bell gains that much attack for this turn — and it does piercing damage!”

The wand is more like a staff made of crystal and dangling with icicles.  It affixes to the front of Winter Bell and flashes once along with Winter Bell’s eyes.  Ruri won’t be able to take that attack!

Yuzu reaches Ruri.  She’s actually _growling_ , her whole body shaking and teeth bared.  Yuzu grabs her arm, and Ruri actually snarls.

“Ruri-san!” she cries.  “Ruri-san, listen! You told me that you didn’t want to fight!  You don’t have to fight her! You’re both misunderstanding things!”

Ruri flings her off of her and Yuzu stumbles.  Panic rises in Yuzu’s chest.

“Ruri-san!” she screams.  She grabs her arm again, clinging with both hands this time.  “Listen to me! She’s not your enemy!”

“Winter Bell, attack!” the cyclist yells.  The air drops noticeably in temperature, and Yuzu can see her own breath.  Something is wrong, something is awful, something bad is going to happen if this attack goes through, she just knows it!  She has to stop it, somehow!”

“Ruri-san!” Yuzu shouts again.  “I — I won’t let you two fight each other!  You’re not _enemies_!”

She throws herself in front of Ruri as the icy blast heads straight for them.  The air freezes over, Bloom Diva lets out a shrill, panicked sound, and Yuzu closes her eyes.

“Not...my...enemy...” Ruri gasps behind her.

Heat explodes over Yuzu’s chilled skin, and her eyes fly open.  The icy blast is — gone. The air instead glitters with starlight, and Yuzu lets all of her air out at once.

“T-trap card open,” Ruri gasps, sounding more like herself.  “Last Recital. By paying half my life points, I destroy all monsters on the field.”

Yuzu whips around to see Ruri gasping, her eyes back to their normal color as she drops to her knees.  Winter Bell and Assembled Nightingale both shriek — and then shatter. Bloom Diva disappears too.

“Ruri-san!”

Yuzu grabs her shoulders to support her as Ruri falls forward.  She is struggling to breathe smoothly — but she still has life points left, and the duel isn’t over.  

“Eh?  What just happened?”

The cyclist’s voice floats over to them, and Yuzu looks over her shoulder.  The cyclist has taken off her helmet and is rubbing her head, wincing as though she’s just had a terrible headache.  Her eyes clear, then, and she looks with shock at her field.

“Winter Bell!  You bitch!”

“Wait!” Yuzu shouts — the pressure is completely gone, and she feels like she’s about to float into the air from the lack of it.  “Wait! Please! I think you two are both dealing with the same thing!”

The cyclist doesn’t look like she’s about to wait for an answer, revving her bike, but Ruri staggers to her feet.  She shakes her head when Yuzu tries to help.

“Y-you lost someone too, didn’t you?” Ruri says.  “You think someone kidnapped someone?”

“I don’t think, I know!” the cyclist shouts.  “And don’t act dumb! I saw you take him!”

“No,” Ruri says.  “Look closer at me.”

The cyclist squints through the dark.  Her eyes flick back and forth between Yuzu and Ruri for a moment.

“What the _fuck_ ,” she says finally.  “So you’re telling me there’s a _third one_?”

Yuzu lets out a tired giggle.

“There’s so many mes,” she gasps, almost giddy with the overexertion and release of panic.

Ruri sighs, and turns off her duel disk.

“I’m looking for my friend, Yuto,” she says.  “He was taken from me.”

The cyclist’s mouth drops open.

“No way!  That’s like — an impossible coincidence!  Are you sure you’re not all lying to me?? In cahoots??”

“I promise we’re not,” Yuzu says.  “I’m totally confused about what’s happening!”

The cyclist glowers at them for a moment, pursing her lips.  She doesn’t seem convinced. She opens her mouth, probably to swear again.

Yuzu’s pendulum gets hot against her shirt, and she gasps.  In the distance, she hears someone shout Ruri’s name, and Ruri jumps, eyes widening as she turns towards someone running towards them, someone Yuzu recognizes as Kurosaki Shun.

Then she hears another voice, this one calling her name, and she looks up.

Then everything goes white for a moment, and all three of them yelp.

When she opens her eyes again, Ruri and Rin are gone.  A panting Yuya skids to a stop in front of her.

“Yuzu!” he gasps.  “What happened?? Gon and I have been looking everywhere for you!”

Yuzu is too dizzy to respond.  And then Kurosaki Shun barrels over to them, grabbing her shoulder and whipping her towards him.  For a moment, she sees his face — broken with fear and relief. And then that fades away as he seems to realize he has the wrong one.

“Where is she?” he yells, shaking her.  “What did you do to Ruri?”

Yuzu just flops in his grip while Yuya grabs him and shouts.  Her eyes flutter closed.

She is much too tired for the rest of this bullshit today.

She’ll deal with it...when she...wakes up...

* * *

_She hesitates, glancing up towards the stadium.  It isn’t hers; she duels in a different circuit, one where she duels with the wind in her hair and the roar of the road beneath her.  She’s always found this one boring. How exciting can it be to watch a duel where both duelists are standing still?_

_She glances up at the screen outside the stadium, wondering who’s even dueling, if it’s anyone she knows.  No, it’s not; she doesn’t recognize either of the faces._

_In another world, this is the part where her eyes drop from the screen, and she keeps walking.  She has a duel to get to in an hour, after all._

_But this is not that world._

_This is the world where her eyes linger for just a bit long — just long enough for the screen to switch from the information screen of the two duelists to the footage of the duel itself.  Just long enough for her to see the dragon leap across the field — and the duelist on top of it._

_She inhales in spite of herself.  Is he riding his dragon?_ During _the duel?  What for? She’s entranced.  She can’t help but stare, watch the young man leap from his dragon’s back and do a flip in the air, only to be caught by a magician in white robes and lowered to the ground, while his dragon takes the attack. It’s like a performance rather than a duel._

_The stadium doors are open.  She squirms from foot to foot for a moment._

_Well...._

_She starts towards the doors.  It would be better to see it in person, wouldn’t it?_

_She has an hour til her duel, after all._

 

 

 

**E N D  P A R T  I I**

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!! Sorry for the late update today, I've been falling a bit behind on things lately. Anyway, this is sorta the "season finale" here -- but please don't worry! The story will continue right from here! But I wanted to let y'all know that I will be taking just ONE week off on this. So it won't update August 6th, but it WILL update August 13th, I promise! 
> 
> The reason being...well, this is the ""season finale"" and to be honest...things have changed a LOT from my initial plan for this scene and this story in general. A loooooot. I need just one week's breather to take a look at my outline, see what I want to do with Part III, and get maybe a tiny cushion of chapters ready to go. 
> 
> Also....no promises, but I would like to start making some Card of the Day additions to each chapter, by drawing/making the cards that I've been making up for this story! Again, no promises for that to start immediately with the next chapter, but that's what this mini break is hopefully going to give me a bit of time to work on.
> 
> I want to give y'all a HUGEEEE thank you for following this project so faithfully and leaving so many lovely comments!! I really appreciate every single one of you; you guys alone have made this project from something my interest was flagging in to something I look forward to working on. So thank you!
> 
> And thank you all so much for your patience, too. I'll see you all with an August 13th!


	28. PART III: Championship

_ It has become abundantly clear that the technology is not being pushed to its furthest capabilities.  Indeed, the program almost seems to have some sort of life all its own. My predecessors’ notes have been most enlightening; it seems that the coding of the program, given appropriate environments, propagates itself and evolves without much outside influence. _

_ The only real question is, how far can that evolution go?  What forms could it be placed into in order to further its evolution to the greatest effect?  And why does it behave the way it does? It is almost alive, as far as a program can be. Almost as though it has a particular endgame in mind. _

_ But that’s nothing more than human anthropomorphization.  It will, of course, require strenuous testing to see what lengths the Solid Vision program can be put to.  Our controls have been set, the grant has been approved, and we are ready to begin. _

 

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 1, Entry 1. Date Unknown.



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're back!! thanks for your patience, the break was definitely needed for me to get my things in order, and I think it's going to help me keep posting on time! Plus, as I said in the previous note about something I wanted to do....I have a Card of the Day segment coming up!! Check the notes in the next chapter (should be up now) to find a link to a card design I've made based on some of the cards I've made up for this story!


	29. Y U Y A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Allegro the Melodious Minstrel](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dkg3PLEU0AA9AZg.png)

_ Log Date XXXX.  Primary experimentation of Solid Vision applied to Virtual Reality technology commences.  Immediate problems have arisen as the AI programming of the Duel Monsters video game used for testing began to glitch immediately after the introduction of the Solid Vision program into the AR goggles. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 2, Entry 5.



* * *

“Hey!! Put her down!!”

Yuya grabs at Kurosaki Shun’s hands, managing to pry him off of Yuzu.  Yuzu immediately slumps without the force holding her up, and Yuya yelps as her entire body crumples against him, sending them both staggering to the ground.  He manages, however, to keep his grip on her, propping her up in his arms. His heart races. Is she okay? She just sort of passed out. What had happened? Kurosaki couldn’t have scared her that much, could he?

His bracelet, which had nearly blinded him a minute before he’d found Yuzu, still feels hot as lava against his wrist.  What exactly had caused it to react like that? 

That isn’t the question he needs to answer right now.  He has bigger things to worry about. Like an unconscious Yuzu and a steaming Kurosaki Shun looming over him.

Yuya wraps his arms around Yuzu and tries to bend himself sort of over her despite the awkward position, so that Kurosaki might take out any sudden moves on him instead of her.

“What’s the big deal?  You’re going to hurt her!” he shouts.

“What did you do to my sister?!” Kurosaki demands, taking another step forward.  “I just saw her! Then that light, and she was gone! What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything!!  I just saw Yuzu, and —”

Yuya’s skin crawls, then.  Because...if he’s honest, he’s pretty sure he had seen someone else with Yuzu a minute before his bracelet had flashed.  And he still remembers that girl, the one that must be Kurosaki’s sister, vanishing the last time his bracelet had gone off.  Maybe he  _ had _ done something.

Still, it wasn’t anything he had done on purpose, and he doesn’t think he deserves that death glare that Kurosaki is throwing at him!

“I don’t know what’s going on either,” he says, and his voice cracks.  “Please — my best friend is unconscious and I don’t even know why! Please just let me take her home!”

In the dark, with nothing but the streetlamp behind him, Kurosaki looks legitimately terrifying.  For a moment, Yuya’s pretty positive that he’s about to kill him.

And then something in Kurosaki’s expression cracks.  His shoulders slump. His eyes don’t leave Yuya’s, and there’s something there in his hazel-gold irises that gives Yuya pause.  He looks...hurt. Like he’s just been burned.

Kurosaki takes a step back from him and puts a hand over his eyes, rubbing his thumbs against them.

“Fuck,” he swears.  “Fuck.”

Yuya doesn’t know how to respond to this.  The brief panic that overtook him at Kurosaki’s threat breaks, and his limbs dissolved into jelly.  It’s all he can do to hold Yuzu up while he trembles.

He’s not sure what he would have done or said next, because in the next moment, two things happen.  First, he hears the familiar and relieving sound of clacking metal shoes against the pavement, and Gongenzaka barrels into view.  Second, a car pulls up along the side of the road, with dark windows that seem to absorb what little light there is.

Gongenzaka shoots Kurosaki a glare when the young man looks up, and then immediately drops to one knee in front of Yuya and Yuzu, blocking Yuya’s view of the car.

“Are you all right?” he rumbles.  “What happened? Why is Yuzu passed out?”

He shoots Kurosaki another dark look, as though he’s responsible for Yuzu’s state.  Yuya reaches past Yuzu to grab Gongenzaka’s sleeve, drawing his attention back to him.

“I’m okay,” he said.  “Yuzu is too. She doesn’t seem to have hit her head or anything.  I think she just passed out from exhaustion. Kurosaki-san didn’t have anything to do with it.”

Kurosaki blinks with surprise, at least, that’s what Yuya thinks he reads in the expression.  It’s hard to quite see him over Gongenzaka’s hulking shoulders.

Yuya hears the car door open, then, and Gongenzaka and Kurosaki both turn to look.  Yuya still can’t see past Gongenzaka, but he thinks he hears some soft footfalls, and then a soft swear from Kurosaki.

He’s not sure if he’s surprised or not when Gongenzaka stands up, and Yuya can finally see the car’s occupant walking towards them — Akaba Reiji.

Reiji’s glasses glint from the street lamp, and he pauses for just a moment to glance at Kurosaki.  Something passes between them that Yuya can’t read, but it makes his skin prickle. Kurosaki actually bares his teeth for a moment.  Reiji simply shakes his head and fixes his glasses.

“We’ll rendezvous at LDS,” he says.  “And discuss where to go from there.”

“Ruri —”

“Can certainly take care of herself, wherever she’s ended up.  You should know that better than I.”

Kurosaki looks like he’s about to blow another gasket, but this time the anger isn’t directed at Yuya, at the very least.  Kurosaki swears, and then he storms away. Reiji only glances at his back before his eyes flicker to Yuya and the others. His eyes fall down to the unconscious Yuzu.

Gongenzaka immediately steps forward, as though to shield them both, and Yuya feels a rush of gratitude for his friend.  At least he’s not here alone with no one but an unconscious Yuzu. Reiji holds up a hand.

“Calm yourself.  I’m not here to harm anyone.”

“What’s happened here?” Gongenzaka says.  “First, you won’t let us see Sora! And now, this!  What do you have to do with all this!”

Yuya feels a chill pass through him when Reiji looks them over one at a time, his eyes ending on Yuzu.  Yuzu’s head slips a bit against Yuya’s shoulder, and he pulls her up to better support her.

“Would either of you happen to know what happened here?” he asks.

“That’s what I, the man Gongenzaka, am asking you!!” Gongenzaka practically roars.

But Reiji doesn’t appear intimidated, and his eyes are on Yuya.  Yuya’s skin crawls again.

“I don’t know,” he finally manages to choke out.  “We were waiting for Yuzu, and then Sora, and then Yuzu ran off, and...and then I found her here, and she passed out.”

Reiji doesn’t blink, doesn’t drop Yuya’s gaze for a long moment.  Then he sighs. He fixes his glasses again.

“It seems we are at an impasse then, because I do not know what occurred either,” he says.

“But you know something!” Yuya says, his voice cracking with the nerves.  “You’re in charge of this — whole city practically! You can’t just show up and then tell us nothing!”

Reiji’s lips press together for a moment, as though he’s considering this.  He brushes the ends of his scarf back over his shoulders.

“You raise a decent point,” he says.  “At this point, perhaps I have no choice but to be more...straightforward.”

His eyes flicker back to Yuzu again.

“We won’t get much of anywhere while she’s asleep.  I’ll have my driver ferry you all home. Come see me again when she wakes up, and we will discuss what needs to be discussed.”

“But — ” Yuya starts.  There’s an edge in Reiji’s blank expression that makes his words lodge in his throat.  Yuzu breathes quietly in his arms, and he realizes that maybe Reiji is right. The most important thing is getting her home right now.

“Okay,” he says.  “But you have to promise.  You have to promise that you’re going to tell us what’s going on.”

Reiji’s expression does not change.  But he simply nods, and beckons them to the car.  Gongenzaka scoops Yuzu up from Yuya’s arms when he struggles to get a solid grip on her, and they follow Reiji.  Yuya glances back at the park where they came from, wondering what could have happened here.

His eyes flicker towards the ground.  Are those...

...motorcycle tread marks?


	30. R U R I / Y U Z U

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Card of the Day: Adagio the Melodious Minstrel](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/177212562894/another-melodious-card-for-my-role-reversal-fic-d)

_ The programmers are stumped.  Solid Vision has been applied to several other Virtual Reality programs and worked without a hitch.  It seems it is only with the Duel Monsters game program that it begins to glitch. Further exploration of the nature and cause of the glitches has been ordered. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 2, Entry 17.



* * *

Ruri stumbles and nearly smacks into a wall, clutching Assembled Nightingale like a lifeline.  She presses her other hand against the brick, trying to get her bearings back. Okay — where is she now?

When the popping sensation of the transfer between worlds finally fades, and her ears pops clear, she finally looks up.  Assembled Nightingale has aimed her true: she can see the spire of LDS Tower just outside the alley she’s ended up in. It’s full daylight already.  How long has she been gone? She’s never had a real sense of how time passed between the dimensions, but it seems to be mostly synched up. It had been nightfall when she had seen Yuzu and the other girl, and when the light had sent her away.  It had taken her most of the night to wake the power of Assembled Nightingale again to come back. The monster had seemed somehow...exhausted. Ruri can hardly remember most of the night’s events herself.

She quickly turns her Duel Disk towards her, sending off a message to Shun about where she is and that she’s coming back to the tower.  He’s probably on the warpath by now. She sends another message to Reiji, since he’s probably having to deal with it. Then she hurries towards the tower, anxious to get back and find out what she’s missed, and maybe work through exactly what happened last night.

Luckily, her Duel Disk dings before she’s even through the doors.  She’s surprised to find that Reiji’s answered before Shun. It’s a simple message:  _ Thank you for keeping me informed.  I’m in my office. _  Sounds like him.

She shows off her badge to the guards in the lobby, and hurries back to the elevator.  Thankfully, she runs into no strange doppelgangers this time, and when the elevator reachs the fourth floor, it pauses, and the doors slide open to reveal a winded looking Shun.

He flings himself into the elevator and hugs her, nearly suffocating her for a moment.  

A small relief pulses through her, and for another moment, she holds him back, just letting her face fall against his shoulder to confirm he’s really there.

He breaks away first as the elevator shoots back up, grabbing her face in both hands and turning her this way and that, checking for injuries.

“Hey, stop,” she says, batting him off. “I’m okay.”

“Where have you been??” he demands, but he does let go when she pushes him off.  “I’ve been looking for you all goddamn night! Not even a message?”

“I couldn’t send one.  I was out of range,” Ruri say.  She doesn’t like the way he pales when she says that.  “Please, niisan, I’ll explain what happened, but wait until we’re with Akaba-san.  He’ll want to know too, and I don’t want to repeat myself.”

Shun scowls at that, folding his arms.

“I think we’re sharing too much with him already,” he says.  “I don’t like him, Ruri. I don’t trust him.”

“And I’m glad for your skepticism, because one of us should be,” Ruri says, sighing and running a hand through her bangs.  “But Akaba-san’s been nothing but forthright on nearly any question I’ve asked. And he’s got the manpower that we don’t. I don’t think it’s wrong to share what we know to help the operation against Academia.”

Shun grumbles, but he doesn’t argue any further.  Ruri is just clinging onto the vaguest hope that Reiji knows more about what happened to her than she does.

The elevator dings and they’re released directly into Reiji’s office.  He’s dimmed the top half of the windows, so that the brightest glare of the sun doesn’t pierce inside.  He’s already standing in front of his desk, clutching a steaming paper cup of what Ruri assumes is coffee in one hand, the other hand drumming against the table.  He looks awful, like he either hasn’t slept all night, or he passed out face first on his desk. His hair is mussed in places and there are dark circles under his eyes.  Still, though, he maintains his usual blank expression.

“Good to see you,” Reiji says.  “I assume something must have happened last night, or we would have heard from you sooner.”

“I’m hoping you might have some idea as to what,” Ruri says.

Reiji takes a sip of his coffee, and up close, Ruri can tell how bleary his eyes are.  It’s a wonder he’s still standing.

“I’ll need more details before I can form any theories,” he says.  “Tell me what happened last night. Starting from when you confronted Shiunin Sora, which I believe I expressly asked you not to do.”

Ruri flushes at that, and tugs at the hem of her LDS uniform.  That was stupid of her, she realizes that now. But she had felt so close to a clue about Yuto...she’d let her emotions take over.

“I planned to visit him and just ask a question or two,” she says, twirling her hair over her shoulder.  “But...on the way down, I ran into Hiragi Yuzu.”

Reiji nods. 

“I have reviewed that part on tape,” he says.  “Though I’m not sure what passed between you. Did she...react to you?”

“She definitely seemed surprised,” Ruri says.  “As was I...seeing her over the screen didn’t do our resemblance justice.”

She thinks about the third girl, the one on the motorcycle, and her stomach twists.  So there are  _ three _ of them?  Maybe...if Ruri’s extrapolations were correct, there were even four.  But she’ll bring that up later.

“Anyway.  I’m sure you’ve seen the tapes.  I...let myself get a little heated,” she says.

Reiji blinks at her over his coffee, and she’s not sure if it’s tact or exhaustion that makes him not bring up the fact that she nearly strangled Shiunin Sora.  He takes another sip of the coffee, wincing at the heat.

“So that much I understand.  I saw you confront both him and Hiragi Yuzu.”

“Hiragi was fighting you?” Shun says, shooting a look at Ruri.  He glares at Shun. “You didn’t tell me that!”

“She was trying to protect her friend,” Ruri says, putting a hand on his arm.  “She didn’t know what was going on, except that she considered Shiunin a comrade, and thought I was assaulting him.”

“If she’s Shiunin Sora’s comrade, then she’s probably with Academia!  She uses Fusion, too!”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” Reiji says.  He rubs his temple with one finger. “Hiragi Yuzu’s records are very complete.  She’s been in this dimension since her birth.”

“That doesn’t mean she couldn’t have made a contact!” Shun says, eyes flaring.  “Shiunin joined their school — why? Academia should have sent their spy to infiltrate LDS if anything.  Why a small unknown like You Show?”

The thought has certainly occurred to Ruri before, and she feels suddenly very uneasy. Shun is making an excellent point.  It’s very suspicious that Shiunin Sora joined up with You Show instead of LDS, and then, mysteriously, both Hiragi Yuzu and Sakaki Yuya are both using Fusion?  They  _ had _ seen Sakaki Yuya with Shiunin at the harbor, practicing to learn Fusion.

But still.  Ruri can remember the horrified look in Yuzu’s eyes, the way she immediately turned off her Duel Disk after Shiunin disappeared, how she caught Ruri before she could collapse.  She can still remember Yuzu’s hand cupping hers, and the genuine concern in her voice when she whispered  _ “you don’t want to fight, do you?” _

“While the possibility that You Show has made contact with our enemies is there, I highly doubt it,” Reiji says.

“How can you be so sure?” Shun shoots at him.

Despite all his visible exhaustion, Reiji does not flinch from Shun’s gaze — and indeed, it’s Shun who looks away first.

“You Show could be a powerful ally,” he says.  “And I will not have us alienate them without proof.”

“It looks pretty damning,” Shun mutters.

Reiji looks to Ruri, and she automatically stands a little straighter.

“Could you fill us in on the last of your adventure last night?  I’m afraid that we lost visuals on you only a few moments after Shiunin was recalled.”

Ruri swallows.  She’s not sure how much there is that she can properly tell.

“Hiragi Yuzu doesn’t seem like an enemy,” she says.  “She was just confused. But we didn’t have much chance to speak because...well.  Someone else showed up.”

Reiji’s eyebrows raised, and Shun whips to look at her.

“That must have been around where we lost visual,” Reiji says.  “Who appeared?”

Ruri looks at her brother.

“Shun, do you remember the motorcyclist?”

Shun’s eyes widen.  He swears.

“You mean that bitch who almost ran you over?  Yeah, I remember. Wait —  _ she _ showed up??  That Synchro mole?”

Reiji glances between the two of them, and Ruri reorients her focus on him.

“Back in XYZ, we were attacked by a girl on a motorcycle,” she says.  “She came after Shun and I out of nowhere, scattering several of our comrades.  She was an excellent duelist — and she used Synchro.”

Reiji’s lips turn down, and his eyes flash.

“Synchro is working with Fusion?”

“That’s certainly what it looked liked,” Ruri says.  “Luckily, we had reinforcements, and she ended up retreating.  But she showed up again last night, and...”

She feels sick again, and wrings her hands in front of her.

“Well, I finally got a look at her face,” she said.  “And she’s the same as Hiragi. She looks just like me.”

Shun swears.  Reiji’s expression turns unreadable, his glasses momentarily obscured by the steam of his coffee.

“I don’t...completely remember what happened after that,” Ruri says.  Her head pangs with a faint headache. “We started dueling, but...after that it’s kind of a blank.”

“What does that mean?” Shun says.  “Did she do something to you?”

“No, I don’t think so...the last clear thing I remember is Yuzu grabbing hold of me and shaking me awake,” Ruri says, frowning.  “The cyclist insisted that I had taken someone important from her, and that she would remember someone with the same face as her.”

Reiji’s eyes narrow.

“So,” he says.  “A fourth.”

“Four?  Four what?” Shun says.

“After that, something happened.  I don’t really remember that, either.  Some light encased me and...and I was back in Heartland.”

Shun’s face pales.  He grabs hold of her.

“Are you all right?  Did someone transfer you?  Did you see anyone there? How did you get back?”

“Niisan, I can only answer one question at a time,” she says.  “I spent the night hiding out in an old shed. I didn’t see or hear anyone.  It just...took me a little while to get my transport working again.”

Shun still doesn’t know how Ruri got here, and Ruri’s for some reason loathe to tell him.  He might not even believe her if she says that her ace card seems able to take her across dimensions.  Better to let him think that she did whatever he did to get here, which she’s still not positive on his means herself.

She looks at Reiji, then, hoping against hope that he has something more to give her, now that he’s heard her story.  Even just a theory will be enough.

Reiji looks very, very thoughtful.  For a moment, Ruri can almost see the gears turning in his head.  He’s on to something. She can sense it.

He takes another long gulp of his coffee, from which the steam has mostly dissipated.

“I’ll need to run a few more calculations,” he says.  “And test a few more things. I can’t make any concrete guesses as to what all this means or what caused you to transfer.”

“I’ll bet that Sakaki Yuya had something to do with it,” Shun says.  “He appeared just after Ruri vanished!”

Did he?  Ruri’s chest twists when she thinks about him, the boy who looks like Yuto.  And then...a thought occurs to her. Hadn’t something similar happened to them before?  Back when she had confronted Shiunin and Sakaki Yuya at the harbor. His bracelet had glowed a pinkish-red color that had blotted out her vision, and she and Shun ended up halfway across the city.

“It happened before, too!  Back at the harbor, we both suddenly teleported when his bracelet glowed!”

So Shun clearly remembers too.  Ruri swears mentally.

Reiji, for his part, maintains a cool exterior.

“Interesting,” he says.  “We’ll look into it.”

Shun storms forward and slams a hand on Reiji’s desk, looming over him.  Reiji doesn’t flinch or move back. He just stared at Shun’s eyes inches from his.

“I’m telling you,” Shun says.  “Sakaki Yuya must be an enemy. That whole damn school is probably in league with Academia!  We need to take them down now!”

“ _ Niisan _ , no,” Ruri says, grabbing for the hem of his coat, but Shun won’t be dissuaded.

“I’ve noted your opinion,” Reiji said.  “And I reject your proposed solution.”

“You’re letting a potentially dangerous element just sit there?  You’re not going to do anything about it??”

Shun looks like he’s getting ready to punch Reiji.  But then Reiji stands upright, forcing Shun to move back slightly.  Reiji stares directly at Shun without breaking away from the too close position.

“This is my city,” he says, his voice low, and for the first time, thrumming dangerously.  “And I will decide how to defend it.”

Shun tries to keep up his bravado, but eventually, Reiji’s fierce stare and Ruri’s tug on his coat wins out.  He swears, and steps back. Ruri grabs him around the waist in a desperate hug, heart hammering. Her brother is so scary when he’s angry, he’s almost like an entirely different person.  She feel tears bubbling in her eyes. She wants this to be over. She wants this to all be over so her life can be normal again.

Shun awkwardly puts an arm around her shoulder in response to her hug, but doesn’t say anything.

“I need to run a few more simulations before we make any decisions,” Reiji says.  “I’ll be quite grateful if, for the time being, you two keep your movements confined to the terms of the tournament.  I’ll update you when I have something to share.”

And with that, Ruri senses they’re dismissed.  She pulls on Shun, and he lets her lead him back to the elevator.  Her head is still spinning as she tries to wrap her head around all that’s happened.

_ Reiji has a theory _ , she thinks.   _ And he’s not sharing it. _

* * *

It’s like trying to wake up while being plunged underwater.  Yuzu imagines herself pawing at the heavy ocean waves that threaten to overtake her, clawing and grasping for the surface just barely out of her reach.  She’s close — she’s so close!

She wakes with a snap, air rushing into her lungs as though she hasn’t been breathing.  She hears a startled squeak of sneakers and a gasp, and then the fumble of something heavy against a table and a faint swear.

Yuzu blinks, staring up at the ceiling.  It’s...her ceiling. It’s her room. What is she doing here?  What...happened?

“Ah!  Yuzu! You’re awake!!”

She blinks through the blur, squinting to the side.  She’s been tucked beneath her covers, clad in her favorite purple pajamas.  When her swimming vision clears, she finds...Yuya. Yuya’s leaning over her, his hand pressing against her forehead for a moment with his other hand on his own.

“Well, no fever,” he says.  “Hang on a sec! I gotta let your dad know you’re up!  I finally convinced him to take a break to use the bathroom.”

He scampers off before Yuzu can even get a word in, and for a moment, Yuzu is alone.  She lays there for a moment, just reminding herself where all her limbs are. She twitches her fingers experimentally.  How did she get here, anyway? The last thing she remembers is...

Her eyes open fully, and the events of the night before come rushing back.  Sora. Ruri. The cyclist. The awful, awful pressure in her chest, choking her to death.  The...the  _ anger _ .  

She groans softly as she forces herself to sit up.  It’s all coming back to her. The duel, the pressure, the moment where she could have summoned Bloom Bard, but she didn’t.  Where are her cards?

They’re on her desk, and when she finally stands up and starts moving again, she feels as though she’s been awake for a while.  There’s no exhaustion, no lingering sleepiness or even dizziness. She feels fine.

She finds her deck sitting neatly on her desk along with her Duel Disk.  She flips over the first card, and there she is: Bloom Bard, staring at her.  The card feels somehow warm, as though it’s retaining its own heat.

“Why didn’t you want me to summon you?”

She feels weird.  Logically, she knows that talking to her card is strange.  But it feels right, somehow. This card is the strangest one she’s ever met.  It appeared with no warning in her deck, and yet she somehow feels like she’s known it forever.  It fits into her archetype perfectly, and yet...feels like it exists outside of it.

The card still feels warm, and she’s pretty sure it has nothing to do with her imagination.  She holds it in both hands now, drawing it up to her eyes, as though the artwork might start moving and she doesn’t want to miss it.

“What happened last night?” she whispers.  “I could...feel something. Did you have anything to do with it?”

There is, of course, no answer.  But she feels as though the heat drains out of the card, and for a moment, it’s nearly icy cold to the touch.

“Yuzu!!”

She yelps when her father practically tackles her, and then scoops her up into a suffocating hug.  He’s sobbing, his tears scattering over her hair as he almost swings her back and forth.

“Oh my gosh, thank goodness!!  You came home so late and you weren’t waking up, and — and — and —”

He just dissolves into sobs, squeezing her even more tightly.  Yuya appears in the doorway, looking sheepish.

“I’m fine, dad,” Yuzu groans, not that it’s going to end the hug any time soon.  “I was jus tired.”

“Tired!! You’ve been asleep for a whole day, Yuzu!!”

What??  A whole day?

Her father starts crying again, and she lets him hug her.  Her bones will regret it later, but she’s clearly worried him, and she feels awful about it.  She manages to extract herself from the awkward position so that she can hug him back, letting himself cry himself out.

“Sorry,” she mumbles.  “I didn’t mean to make you worry.”

Finally, his sobs turn to sniffles, and she’s finally allowed to stop hugging him and collapse to sit on the edge of your bed.

“What happened?” he demands now, though his stern expression is ruined by the fact that he is still sort of crying.  “What was going on?”

Her head pangs a bit, and in her hands, she feels Bloom Bard grow warm again.  She shoots a glance at Yuya through her bangs. He catches her eye, and shakes his head.   _ Talk later, _ he mouths.  Maybe he can help her fill in the blanks, then, since it seems he’s the one who found her.

“I’m sorry, dad.  I was really worried about Sora so I went to check on him, and I guess I just got too upset.  I stayed out too late and I think all the emotional stress wore me out.”

Her father’s lip is still trembling like a sad puppy and it hurts to lie.  But it’s not like he’d believe her that she has two doppelgangers, right?? Unless this is one of those weird situations where her dad is hiding a couple of identical triplets from her.

“Honest, I’m okay,” she reassures him, smiling.  “I think I just needed to sleep it all off. It’s been a rough time.”

He tries to look tough at her for a few more moments, but then it breaks.  He just slumps with relief, and then flops down on the bed next to her, pulling her into a side hug next to him.

“Well, I’m glad then,” he says.  “I’m glad you’re okay.”

Yuzu lets her head fall against his shoulder, and closes her eyes for a moment, just breathing.

“You’ve missed a pretty intense day of duels,” Yuya says.  “The last rounds of the prelims just ended.”

“Who’s moving on?” Yuzu asks, opening her eyes.

Yuya counts them off on his fingers.

“Gongenzaka beat Ankokuji, no surprises there.  There’s a bunch of those weird medieval knight guys and some dudes from a kung fu sorta school who are moving up.  That one pop star duelist passed up her LDS opponent, and of course there’s a bunch of LDS people moving on. Oh, Mieru lost, too, to some ninja guy in just one turn.”

“Really?  She gave you trouble,” Yuzu says. 

“Yeah, I know.  She seemed pretty bummed,” Yuya says.  “Speaking of people who gave me trouble: Shijima Hokuto beat Mitchie.  My mom was so upset.”

Yuya looks a little nervous at that, and Yuzu’s reminded that he lost to Hokuto during that exhibition duel.  He’s probably worried about coming up against him again.

“Well, show him how much you’ve learned this time,” she says, smiling.  “You’re gonna kick some butt.”

Yuya smiles.

“Thanks,” he says.  “You too!”

There’s a faint buzz, and he jumps, scrambling for his Duel Disk.

“Oh, no, my mom’s gonna blow a gasket.  I told her I’d text an hour ago to check in.  I gotta go, I’m sorry, Yuzu!”

“No, it’s okay.  We’ll catch up tomorrow with the next round,” she says.

“I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Yuya says, flashing another smile.  “Sorry,  _ sensei,  _ to leave so fast!”

“Tell your mom I said hello,” Yuzu’s father calls after him as he waves and runs.

Yuzu’s Duel Disk buzzes in her lap just moments after Yuya leaves.  She tilts towards herself surreptitiously, so her dad won’t look over her shoulder.

_ Akaba Reiji drove us home last night.  He says he wants to talk to us when you’re awake.  Let’s meet up tomorrow morning. _

Yuzu’s skin crawls.  Reiji met up with them?  What was he doing there? And what does he know?

She deletes the message before her father sees it, and just sends a thumbs up emoji back.  

Maybe tomorrow, she’ll get some answers.


	31. R E I R A / R E I J I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/177453732994/yuzus-ace-from-my-role-reversal-fic-d-i-s-p-e-r)

_Trial 32X9.  New control levels have been set to test Solid Vision.  We will be using a generic car program in one headset and a car programmed for a Duel Monsters hologram in another.  Hopefully this will isolate the source of the hologram glitches._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 2, Entry 25.



* * *

 

Reira waits outside the door, wondering if they should go in.  They hug the teddy bear as tight as possible — it is soft, and it reminds them where they are.

The door opens, and Reira scurries back out of the way.  But it’s only Reiji, and he blinks with some surprise when he sees Reira waiting there.

“Have you been out here the whole time?”

Reira nods.

“Where is mother?”

Reira glances back down the hallway where he came from.  Reiji looks, and then looks back at Reira.

“Did she leave you alone again?”

Reira nods again.  After Reira had completed his duties of winning his last match, Himika had sent him back to the office and told him to wait.  It had been a direct order, and Reira should probably be punished for not staying put. But...

Reira’s eyes flicker down the hall, and he tightens his grip on his bear.

Reiji looks again where Reira is looking.

“Is something wrong?” he asks.

He has a very soft voice when he talks to Reira.  Reira likes it. It’s an odd feeling: liking something.  He’s pretty sure that the little warmth in his chest means that he likes it.

Reira points down the hall, to the door he passed to get here.  Reiji tries to follow where he’s pointing. He looks as though he doesn’t understand, so Reira tries to make it into words.

“I hear him,” Reira mumbles.

Reiji’s eyes briefly narrow.  Then he leans down and touches Reira’s shoulder.  It’s a light touch, not like the way Himika grabs hold to steer Reira where she wants him to go.  It’s the kind of touch that Reira thinks could probably be classified as “reassuring.”

“Do you feel comfortable telling me what you hear?” he asks.

Reira swallows.  His eyes flicker back down the hall.  He tries to think if he can really put it into words.

When he passes that door, he feels something strange.  Something in the pit of his stomach, something that twists like its alive, like it’s crawling under his skin.  Whatever’s in that room knows that he can hear them, and he can hear it whispering, hissing in a language he doesn’t know.  Sometimes there’s a human voice with it. Arguing or agreeing with the whispers and hisses. _“No, you cannot eat him.  Right now he’s our best bet of survival.”  “Of course if he betrays us you can eat him, but not right now.”  “God you’re all so needy. I’ll find something for you to eat later.  We’re staying put until it looks safe to leave.”_

Reira shudders.

“Scary,” Reira whispers.

Reiji’s grip squeezes lightly.

“Don’t worry,” he says.  “He won’t hurt you. We’ll just leave him alone for now.”

Reiji seems confident, and if Reiji is confident, that probably means it’s okay.  Reira will try to avoid passing that door from now on.

“You can come in, Reira.  You don’t have to stay all by yourself.”

Reira feels something that he thinks must be relief as he scurries into the dark control room when Reiji opens the door.  He wants to be away from the whispers. He wants to be away from Himika. He likes being by Reiji the best.

The control room is dark save for the screens, and it’s soothing.  As long as Reira doesn’t look at the things moving all over the screens, this room is very calm, like Reiji.  It doesn’t overwhelm Reira like the rest of the world does.

He hesitates, squeezing his teddy bear, when he sees that she’s here, though.

Ruri looks up.  She smiles at Reira with a gentle sort of look, but he moves behind Reiji, grabbing at the end of his scarf.  Reira doesn’t know how to feel about Ruri. She’s nice. She doesn’t shout. She has a very nice, calm voice, like Reiji, and she doesn’t make sudden moves or tell Reira to do things.

Except...

Reira sends a nervous look around Reiji’s legs at Ruri.  Ruri doesn’t look offended that Reira has hidden from her, and instead just looks back to Reiji, and they pick up their conversation where they left off.  It’s hard to hear what they’re saying, though, over the low whistles and chirps coming from Ruri’s deck box.

Ruri is quiet, but her monsters are loud.  And one of them always seems just a bit angry.  The other person with the whispers, his monsters know when Reira is listening.  Ruri’s monsters don’t know that Reira can hear them, and so sometimes, Reira gets bits that he understands through the whistling, birdsong language.  Sometimes, Reira gets the wave of frustration, the screaming of the monster that hides inside Ruri’s deck.

Sometimes, he can sense the bird creature’s eyes on the world around it, and can sense how badly it wants to start tearing it apart.

Reira shudders, and hides behind Reiji.  Everything is scary.

* * *

Something is wrong with Reira.  The child is normally difficult to read and doesn’t talk much, but lately, Reira’s been even more closed off than usual, and that’s saying something.  Reiji frowns to himself, his mind wandering in the middle of his conversation with Ruri. This is probably his fault. He hasn’t had the time to keep an eye on what his mother is doing with the child outside of the usual tournament duels that they both agreed Reira would participate in.

 _Reira is sensitive to things that I can’t understand_ , Reiji thinks, lips turning down.   _It seems Reira can sense Yuuri’s presence._

Reiji has heard, of course, Yuuri talking to something that Reiji can’t hear.  He thought it pure madness at first, something brought on by whatever awful experiments Leo performed on the boy.  But Reira seems to respond to something too. Reiji sighs. It’s getting more complicated by the day.

“Reiji?  Are you in there?”

Ruri’s voice brings him back to the moment.

“My apologies,” he says.  “I’m thinking of too many things at once.”

“Are you really going to bring Sakaki-san and Hiragi-san here?” Ruri asks.

Reiji nods.

“They’ve become involved.  And if your brother is correct, and they’ve become our enemies, I’d rather have them in a place where I can keep a closer eye on them.”

What he does not say, is that he’s hoping to learn more about what happened to Sakaki Yusho.  Perhaps, if Shun is correct in his assumption that You Show has become in league with Academia, his worst fears are correct and Yusho has sided with Leo.  He needs to know just how bad things are.

The other thing he does not say, as his eyes flick over Ruri, the face that looks so eerily like Yuzu’s, is that he fears something else is afoot.  Ruri’s explanation of that night worries him. The girl from Synchro, with the same face as the other two girls, claiming that someone who looked just like her had stolen someone close to her.  Ruri is missing someone she claims looks just like Yuya. And another boy with the same face as Yuya was hidden away in one of Reiji’s saferooms, someone that it seems his father is keen on keeping in custody.

At least three girls, perhaps four, with the same face.  And at least three boys. He can’t confirm that the Synchro girl’s missing friend looks like Yuya and the others, but he’s near positive that he does.  That’s not even counting that first file that Reiji found three years ago, the one labeled Arc Area Project, with nothing but two photos left inside.

If Reiji’s theories are correct, then Sakaki Yuya is his father’s prime target.  And in that case, Reiji absolutely cannot allow Akaba Leo to claim him.

“Does it worry you?” he asks, noting the look in Ruri’s eyes.

“It seems that nearly every time I’m near Sakaki-san, I’m transported away,” she says.  “I only wonder if perhaps there’s some reaction that might occur if I’m near them.”

“For the time being, until we can isolate the cause of your sudden recalls, we’ll keep you and the two of them separate,” Reiji says.  “Where is your brother?”

“He should still be upstairs,” Ruri says.  “I think he’s using one of your simulation rooms to blow off steam again.”

It’s not the worst thing he could be doing, so Reiji tries not to get irritated over it.  It seems impossible, however — Kurosaki has a way of making him irritated simply by existing, it seems.  Reiji does not like wild cards.

“We should let him know that the two of them will be coming soon,” he says, turning towards the doors.  “I would not like him to be surprised by it and become impulsive.”

Ruri lets out an exasperated sigh that makes Reiji think she is thinking the same thing.  She follows him from the room. Reira is still clinging to the end of Reiji’s scarf, and he walks slower to accommodate his smaller steps.

“I’m worried that we may be up against a sting invasion soon,” Reiji says. “After we speak with Sakaki and Hiragi, I’ll want to speak with you and your brother privately about defense protocols.”

Ruri nods.  Reiji is going to say something else, but he forgets when he hears Reira gasp, and feels a tug on his scarf as Reira stops abruptly.  Ruri’s eyes flicker at a door opening almost right next to them.

Reiji tenses.  That’s Yuuri’s room.  He asked Yuuri to stay inside during the day; why is his door opening?

Yuuri’s door pops open.  He looks just as ragged as before, dark circles weighing at his eyes, and a nervous twitch in his fingers.

Damn.  Reiji had wanted to keep him and Ruri separate for the time being — Yuuri was nervous and impulsive, and Ruri would likely mistake him for her missing friend again.  Not to mention, he worries for what kind of upset it will cause if either Kurosaki learns that Reiji is sheltering an Academia agent here. He needs to quickly come up with some kind of explanation, something that Ruri will accept.

He doesn’t have a chance to say a word.  Ruri chokes on a gasp, and Yuuri’s eyes bulge.  A feral sort of hiss escapes his throat as he lurches back, smacking into the open door and stumbling past Reira, who ducks behind Reiji with a squeak.

“Bastard!” Yuuri shrieks.  “You bastard liar!”

“Yuuri, calm down,” Reiji says, but Yuuri’s eyes are wide and wild, shot with red.

“You were working with _her_!!  You were working with her the whole time!”

Reiji’s eyes flick to Ruri, who’s gone pale, and then back to Yuuri’s wild eyes.   _Her_ — Yuuri knows the one of the girls with the same face as Ruri.  And it seems that he’s afraid of her.

“Yuuri, it’s a misunderstanding.  This is not —”

Yuuri’s Duel Disk is turning on.  Ruri chokes, and Reiji swears. He pushes her and Reira behind him, his own arm bolting up in defense.

But Yuuri only slaps a spell card into its slot, and a violent purple light flashes over Reiji’s eyes.  Ruri yelps, Reira lets out a cry, and Reiji swears.

When his vision clears, Yuuri is gone.  Reiji’s heart hammers in his chest.

“Dammit,” he swears.  He hits his Duel Disk to send out an alert — if Yuuri is out on the streets again, he’ll start carding people.  And he’ll be a sitting duck for Leo if Academia sends agents to kidnap him again.

When he looks up again, Ruri is staring at him with a hollow look in her eyes.

“Reiji-san,” she says.  “Who was that?”


	32. Y U Z U / R U R I / Y U Y A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Tempo the Melodious Minstrel](https://78.media.tumblr.com/bd0f1aaa35e1c1a169f95bdd1c6d7ab8/tumblr_peiewtcgOH1wgflrqo1_540.png)

_ Observation Report A: Control Group.  Solid Vision works with the generic car program perfectly.  The test subject had no trouble manipulating the virtual steering wheel and controls.  The car functions are as normal. Below are labeled the recorded outputs from all measured variables, including steering control, gas usage, air conditioning output, brake sensitivity, and total miles per hour recorded. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 2, Entry 37.



* * *

A man in the uniform of the LDS Elite Team slams through the doors, nearly smacking into Yuzu.  She leaps out of the way of the swinging door just in time, but she falls into Yuya and Yuya almost tumbles over. 

The uniformed man doesn’t even look at them, bolting off down the street.  Yuzu and Yuya exchange a glance.

“Guess he’s in a hurry,” Yuya says, shrugging.

Yuzu frowns after his disappearing back.  Then she shakes her head, and pulls open the door to the LDS lobby.

She’s shocked at how busy it is in here.  There are students all milling about, chattering about the tournament and other things.  There’s a few copses of more LDS Elites who are trying to usher the students out, saying something about how there aren’t any classes during the tournament and not to crowd the lobby.  The three receptionists all look bogged down, two of them on the phone while another one rings, and one of them trying to explain to an angry looking mother why her son didn’t win his first match in the Maiami tournament.

Just down the hallway, another door opens, releasing another group of LDS Elites who bustle past Yuya and Yuzu without so much as an excuse me.  What’s with these guys?

“Do you think something happened?” Yuzu asks.

“Looks like probably a normal day for a company like this,” Yuya says.

Well, sure, but what are all those Elites doing all over the place?  Yuzu frowns. Another question for Reiji when they meet him.

She drums her fingers on her arm as she waits for the poor receptionist to deal with the angry mother.  Eventually, the woman storms off, and the receptionist looks relieved. Yuzu lets her eyes flick over the woman’s name tag: H. Reiser.  Well, she looks foreign, so the name matches.

“Can I help you kids?” she asks, wiping back her sweaty bangs back under her headband.  “There aren’t any classes today, you know, and registration ended a few weeks ago.”

“Oh, we know, we’re not students here,” Yuzu says.  “Um...we were told to meet Akaba Reiji-san here?”

The woman’s eyebrows fly up so high they almost disappear into her hairline.  She studies the two of them for a moment.

“Hun, we don’t really have time for prank calls today,” she says.

“It’s not a prank,” Yuya says.  “We’re here to meet him. It’s about You Show Duel School?”

_ Thanks, Yuya _ , Yuzu says.  She’s still disoriented from whatever happened last night, and it’s hard to keep up her professional persona.

The woman’s lips form an “o” of recognition.

“Oh, that’s right,” she says.  “Hang on.”

She ruffles through some papers in a binder, and then taps out something on the computer.  She picks up the phone and dials a number. Yuzu squirms, waiting impatiently. She wants to talk to him now!  She wants to know everything he does!

The woman frowns as she listens to the line on the other end of the phone.  Then she sighs, and hangs up.

“I’m sorry, kids, but it looks like the president isn’t available right now.”

“What?  But he told us to meet him!”

“His office phone is on the emergency voicemail, and there’s some kind of commotion going on with the tournament,” the woman says.  She does look apologetic, and Yuzu tries not to get angry with her. She’s angry with  _ Reiji _ .  “Sorry, it’s just a really busy time what with the tournament and all.  Should I put your names down and have him call you back as soon as he can?”

Yuzu wants to say no, and make Reiji track them down later when he gets off his ass, but she calms herself.  Reiji might not even think it worth his time to come after them later.

“Please,” she says, giving the woman her name and number.  “And tell him it’s pretty important that we talk soon.”

“I’ll pass it on,” the woman says.  She winks, which Yuzu feels like doesn’t match the situation. 

She and Yuya move off to the side.  Yuzu is trying not to boil her blood right now.

“He promised he’d explain,” she hisses.

“There must be something really important happening,” Yuya says, glancing at another group of LDS Elites.  “Hey, you don’t think...”

He looks a little pale.

“I mean, what you said that that Ruri girl said.  Something about her home being invaded. You don’t think...that’s going to happen here, do you?”

Yuzu has been trying not to think about that.  If there’s a major emergency so that Reiji can’t talk to them when he said he would...well, Reiji seems like the type to keep his promises, from what little she knows of him.  You don’t get to become the CEO of a major company like this by being a flake, at any rate.

“I don’t know what to think,” Yuzu says.  “I don’t even know how much of what Ruri told me is true.”

Yuya still looks sick, and she squeezes his elbow.

“Hey.  It’s going to be okay,” she says.  “I’ll be it’s just some sponsor making Reiji’s life difficult right now or something.  Serves him right for ignoring us, right?”

Yuya cracks a smile, but he still looks worried.

“Let’s meet up with Gongenzaka,” he says.  “If we can’t see Reiji, we might as well keep an eye on the tournament, right?”

Yuzu sighs.  She glances back towards the hallway of LDS, having half a mind to storm down there and find Reiji herself.

“You’re right,” she says.  “We might as well.”

* * *

“You lied to me.”

Ruri’s voice sounds a little hollow even to her, and she tries to reign it in.  But it hurts. She’s always been too trusting, she knows that. She always wants to believe the best in people.  She thought that she and Reiji were starting to form something of a comradery. But this...he was keeping this from her.

“And what would it have changed if I had told you?” Reiji says.

Ruri’s hands roll into fists, and she can sense Shun getting ready to blow.  It happens before she can say anything, as her brother slams his hand on Reiji’s desk, causing papers to fly into the air.

“You were holding an Academia spy here!” he says.  “You were sending us out like dogs to look for Academia but you had them right under your goddamn nose!”

“Yuuri was no spy.  He was a refugee.”

“Oh, sure!  Because one of those evil bastards had a conscience and decided to just run away instead of carding us left and right?”

Reiji’s lips press into a tight line.

“You have no idea the full capacity of what is going on here.  Even I don’t know all that happened to Yuuri in Academia. But don’t start assuming that you’re the only one that’s been hurt here.”

Shun looks like he’s about to smash Reiji in the nose.  Ruri’s not sure she’s going to stop him.

It’s not that she’s mad about Reiji hiding an Academia student from them.  Well, she is a little mad. Knowing that one of them was under the same roof as her makes her skin crawl.  She suddenly feels incredibly unsafe here.

But it wasn’t that that made her chest ache with hollowness.  It was the fact that...he looked like him. The Academia boy looked just like Yuto, just the way Yuya did.  For a moment, she’d been on cloud nine, thinking that maybe this time, she’d found him.

And instead he’d looked at her like she was a demon.  He’d looked angry and terrified all at once, at it had been because of  _ her _ .  Seeing that look on a face that looked like Yuto’s — it hurt.  It hurt more than she could express.

“What else are you hiding from us?” Shun snarls.

“Nothing that will come to any harm to either of you.”

“I don’t fucking believe you!”

Reiji’s hands clench together.  He stands up with a start, making Shun jump a little.

“I didn’t tell you about Yuuri because the less people that knew about him, the safer I thought he would be,” he says.  “And because I knew neither of you would be able to look past the fact that he is from Academia. I knew it would come down to this.”

“Did you know that he’d be afraid of me?” Ruri whispers.

Reiji’s eyes flicker to her.  She can’t read him. She thought she was starting to understand him, but she doesn’t understand him at all.

“No,” he says.  “That was a surprise.  But it does confirm my theory.”

Ruri’s heart quickens at that.  She’s not sure why, but it makes her breath catch.  Reiji is about to tell her something important, she can sense it.

“You told me that the girl from Synchro, the one that looks like you, was also looking for someone.  Someone that she claims was taken by a girl who looks like you.”

Ruri’s throat tightens.  There’s a sudden buzz in her head.

“It seems such a coincidence, doesn’t it?  Four girls, with the same face, one for each dimension.  Yuuri’s panic at seeing you, and the Synchro girl’s insistence that you were the one who took someone close to you.  You just so happen to be missing someone, someone who looks very similar to Sakaki Yuya.”

“Oh my god,” Ruri says, her head spinning.

Reiji nods, but Shun looks confused, looking back and forth between the two of them quickly.

“What?  What does that mean?”

Reiji sits back down at his desk, putting his elbows on the table and steepling his fingers beneath his eyes.

“The Professor imprisoned Yuuri.  Someone who looks like Ruri has taken someone dear to the Synchro girl.  And there just so happens to appear to be a pair of you lookalikes in every dimension.”

He nods towards Ruri.

“I believe the Professor is collecting the boys who look like Yuuri.  In which case...”

“Yuto is alive,” Ruri breathes.  “Oh my god. Shun. Yuto really is alive!”

* * *

“Unacceptable!  Akaba Reiji made you a promise, and he couldn’t keep it?  What kind of man is he?!”

Yuzu looks visibly relieved by Gongenzaka’s irritability.  Yuya can tell she’s been holding back the whole day, and now that Gongenzaka is the one yelling about it, Yuzu probably feels vindicated.

“I know, right?” Yuzu says.  “He made us come all the way there and he wouldn’t even see us after everything that happened!”

“Unacceptable,” Gongenzaka grouses.  “Completely unacceptable!”

Gongenzaka sulks in his seat, arms folded tightly, as he and Yuzu complain.  Yuya only half listens; he’s focused on the stadium below. It’s only about two minutes until the next duel, and he should be excited.  It’s his first big tournament after all, and he gets to see so many duelists, so many new styles!

But he can’t stop thinking about that night.  He can’t stop thinking about every weird thing that’s been happening lately.  He twists his bracelet nervously, thinking about that girl, Ruri. He wonders where she is right now, and what she’s doing.  Is she working with Reiji, the way that Kurosaki that Yuzu said is her brother seems to be? Who is Yuto? And what happened to him?  It all makes his brain hurt. He should be focusing on the tournament.

“Oh, right, Yaiba’s the one who taught you Synchro summoning, right, Gongenzaka?” Yuzu says, finally breaking out of her complaining session.

“Indeed!  He is a very capable duelist and we will certainly see an excellent duel!”

Yaiba is walking out onto the field, grinning and waving his kendo sword at everyone.  The crowd roars and cheers, especially from the section reserved for LDS attendees. It brings a smile to Yuya’s face, and he feels his nerves all melt away.  That’s what the excitement of a duel is for — it’s to make people feel better and get excited. 

He won’t think about hard things right now.  He’ll just enjoy this duel.

“Who’s his opponent?” Yuzu asks.

“Kachidoki Isao, from Ryozanpaku,” Gongenzaka rumbles.  “I’ve heard much of that school — it has a similar tradition to my own, but a far more competitive streak.  I’ve heard that children who attend that school are not allowed to visit their parents until they’ve become a professional.”

“What?  That’s ridiculous,” Yuya says.

Though, when the Kachidoki in question heads out onto the field, he’s not surprised.  Even from here, he looks surly and angry.

“Hmph!  Yaiba-shishou will show him a thing or two,” Gongenzaka says.

Yuya nods, as the field turns on, and the duel begins.  He’s looking forward to Yaiba’s dueling, to see what Gongenzaka’s been learning from.  This duel is just what he needs to forget everything.

Forget...

Everything.

Yuya’s stomach drops out.  He stands up. What — what is happening?  This isn’t a duel! He hears Gongenzaka swear, and Yuzu puts her hands over her mouth, and Yuya feels the blood draining out of his face.

Even from here, Yuya can see how cold Kachidoki’s eyes are, when Yaiba finally can’t handle it anymore, and collapses.  He still has life points left. But he’s not getting up.

Yuya’s ears roar with his heartbeat so that he can’t hear the announcer giving a half-hearted, shocked countdown.  The duel ends in Kachidoki’s favor. Yuya can only watch, frozen and panicked, at the sight of the medics carrying him off the field on a stretcher.  The crowd isn’t cheering anymore.

Yuya stares at Kachidoki’s back as he walks off the field, without even a glance towards the crowd.  Tears briefly blur Yuya’s eyes, and he resists the urge to pull his goggles down.

“What was that?” Yuzu whispers, her throat tight.

This isn’t what Yuya needed.  In fact, he feels even worse. There’s something awful happening around here, and this duel — it wasn’t a duel.  A duel like that would never make anyone smile!

His Duel Disk buzzes.  Distantly, he can hear Nico Smiley announcing that that’s the end of the first round, and their second round matchups have been sent to their Duel Disks.  Yuzu grabs hers quickly, as though desperate for a distraction. Gongenzaka moves more slowly, and looks at it without any real interest.

Yuya takes his time.  He needs to breathe.

Finally, he pulls his Duel Disk out, and looks down at the screen.

His heart seizes up.

“Yuya?  Who’s your match up tomorrow?” Yuzu asks, gently, as though trying to talk him out of his shock.

Yuya only turns the screen to face Yuzu.  Her face goes white.

“Well,” Yuya says, as the face of Kachidoki Isao blinks out at the other two.  “At least I know what I’m up against.”


	33. Y U Z U / Y U Y A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Coro the Melodious Minstrel](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/177956941129/coro-the-melodious-minstrel-level-7-light)

_Observation Report B: Test Group.  The vehicle card Patroid was chosen as the test program, due to its similarity in make and model to the control program.  Up to normal circumstances, the program functioned as a normal car. However, when introduced to outside stimuli, results changed.  The avalanche program was introduced to the control group so that the driver would be able to react by avoiding the falling rocks. However, when introduced to the Patroid program, the program began to glitch.  It reacted as though it were a living organism, avoiding the falling rocks without prompting from the driver._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 2, Entry 39.



* * *

“Now, everyone, please give it up for our next duelists!”

Yuya inhales sharply, and lets it out.  He touches his bracelet with two fingers, taking some comfort in the cool, solid feel of it.  Just outside the hallway, the field is waiting. He can hear the crowd humming with excitement.

“Yuya!”

Yuya hesitates, turning back over his shoulder.  Yuzu runs up to him. She’s winded, and had to take a moment to gasp for breath before she can speak.

“What’s up?” Yuya asks.

Yuzu is still panting, one hand pressed over her heart.  She looks pale. For a moment, her mouth opens, but nothing comes out of it.

“Be careful,” she finally says, and it sounds like that’s not what she wanted to say.

Yuya smiles for her.

“Don’t worry,” he says.  “I’ll be sure to make everyone happy with this duel, no matter how Kachidoki wants to play.”

Yuzu’s hands clasp in front of her, and he can almost taste the words she isn’t saying, the ones she’s forcing herself not to say.   _Don’t duel him_.  But Yuya can’t back down.  He wanted to become stronger.  Not only so that he could stand beside Yuzu and Gongenzaka but...

So that his father would be proud of him, too.

He reaches for her hands, and holds them briefly.  He smiles again.

“Make sure you watch me,” he says.  “It’s going to be a fun duel!”

He turns, and he heads out into the light.  He can feel Yuzu’s worried eyes on his back, and clenches his jaw.  He definitely won’t make her worry.

* * *

Yuzu takes her seat again slowly, not quite hearing Gongenzaka asking her if Yuya’s looking all right.  Yuya is down on the field right now, smiling and waving at the crowd. It’s his performance smile, and she can tell it sometimes wears on him.  Is he wearing it for her right now? So that she won’t worry?

She does worry, though, and her stomach twists when she sees Kachidoki Isao climb the stairs to the field.  He doesn’t look at the crowd. His eyes are only on Yuya — and even from here, where Yuzu can’t see their individual expressions well, she feels a chill in the way he looks at Yuya.  She clenches her hands in her lap.

_Please be okay, Yuya._

“Let’s get this duel started!! Action Field on!” Nico Smiley shouts into his microphone.

The Action Field deploys.  Yuzu watches as the holograms build a thick forest of bamboo, complete with high cliffs overlooking an ocean.  It’s tight, she thinks. Yuya will have trouble maneuvering the way he wants in there.

“Ladies and gentlemen!” Yuya calls, turning his duel microphone on so that the crowd can hear him.  “Thank you so much for your cheers! Let’s have a great duel!”

He draws with a flourish and a bow towards the crowd, and there’s a large scattering of cheers.  He really charmed the crowd with that duel against Sawatari before. Yuzu can feel the excitement, even if she’s not excited herself.

“I’ll normal summon Performapal Silver Claw!” he shouts.

His wolf appears with its own flourish on the field, joining Yuya at his side.  He laughs when it nuzzles him and nearly knocks him over, and then swings his leg over its back to mount it like a horse.

“The turn is yours!” Yuya calls to Kachidoki.  He buries his hands in Silver Claw’s fur, and they bolt off into the bamboo forest — looking for Action Cards already.

Kachidoki, however, doesn’t move.  He simply draws without any fanfare, glancing over his cards.

“Since you have a monster and I do not, I am allowed to summon Hayate the Earth Star without tributing.”

A tall, broad shouldered man with a mandala on his back appears, spinning its spear with a short battle cry.  And then Kachidoki moves.

He moves so fast that Yuzu can hardly see him.  Through the thick bamboo stalks, its hard to see exactly what’s happening, but she hears Yuya let out a yelp, and he and Silver Claw burst through the bamboo on the other side, Yuya waving his hand as though its just been smacked.  Kachidoki reappears with an Action Card in hand. Yuzu’s heart leaps. Did he beat Yuya to the Action Card?

“Hayate attacks Silver Claw,” Kachidoki orders.  His monster surges forward, and Yuya isn’t quick enough.  Silver Claw physically throws Yuya off its back before whirling to meet the spear, and Yuya rolls in the wake of Silver Claw’s shattering.  Yuya’s life points dip, but he skids back to his feet, a determined look on his face in the large screens around the stadium.

Yuzu clenches her hands tightly together to hide the shake.   _Come on, Yuya.  Hang in there, Yuya._

“My turn!” Yuya calls, standing up tall.  “I draw!”

He smiles at his cards.

“All right!  Time to show everyone a dazzling show,” he says into his mic.  “I set the Pendulum Scale with Trump Witch and Stargazer Magician!”

The crowd roars with excitement as the monster ascend in their pillars of light, sending a sparkling glow across the stage.  Yuya spreads his arms out wide to encourage the cheers. He’s still smiling. At least he’s still smiling.

“First, I’ll Normal Summon Performapal Camelump!” he calls, adding the card to his disk.

It’s a cute monster, a big yellow camel dressed up for the show like the rest of his monsters, and there’s a few laughs and cheers from the crowd.

“And now, from the shining gate, I Pendulum summon today’s star, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!”

The sky glows, and from the beautiful interlaced threads of stars over head, a gate opens up.  A pillar of red light descends behind Yuya, and when it clears, Odd-Eyes lifts its head back and roars.  The crowd echoes it, feet stomping and hands pumping into the air. Yuya is really getting them worked up; they’re excited to see what’s next.  Yuzu’s heart slowly starts to slow down. Maybe now that he has Odd-Eyes...he’ll be okay.

“Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!  Attack Hayate!”

Yuya leaps onto Odd-Eyes’s back and the dragon lunges forward.  Kachidoki and his monster both tense, but Kachidoki holds his ground.

“Hayate’s effect — when I have no other monsters, I can negate your attack once per turn,” he says.

Hayate raises his spear and spins it in a fast spiral in front of Odd-Eyes.  Odd-Eyes bounces off, but Yuya keeps his seat. He dosen’t drop his grin.

“I activate Trump Witch’s effect!  Once per turn, I can fusion summon using monsters on my field!”

He leaps off of Odd-Eyes’s back and lands lightly, as both Odd-Eyes and Camelump turn to light and swirl together.  He clasps his hands and brings them down. Yuzu is suddenly reminded of Sora, and the way he fusion summoned. Where is Sora now?  What happened to him?

“I fuse my monsters together to summon the king of animals, Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!”

Odd-Eyes re-emerges from the swirling vortex, but it looks much different.  There’s fur lining its scales now, and it has big red eyes and gnashing teeth.  Yuya swings himself back onto its neck as it lands on the ground, in one fluid motion.

“Beast-Eyes will attack Hayate this time!” Yuya shouts, pulling his goggles over his eyes as Beast-Eyes surges forward.

Kachidoki leaps back, flicking a card onto his disk.

“I activate the Action Spell, Evasion,” he says.  “Your attack is negated.”

Hayate’s afterimage blurs as Beast-Eyes tramples through it, but the monster reappears behind it along with Kachidoki.  Yuya pops his goggles back.

“Nice moves!” he laughs.  “Your move!”

 _He’s getting frustrated_ , Yuzu thinks.   _His smile is getting strained, but he’s trying to keep smiling._

She tightens her grip on her hands.

 _Please hang in there, Yuya_ , she thinks. _Please be okay._

* * *

“Since I have an Earth monster on the field, I can normal summon Tenma the Sky Star without tribute,” Kachidoki says in his monotone.

His voice is calm, but his eyes are not — Yuya can feel them cutting through him like shards of glass.  He almost feels like Kachidoki hates him for some reason — but why? He’s never met Kachidoki before.

Kachidoki’s next monster takes to the field, a similar build and design to Hayate.  Kachidoki then clasps his hands together, and Yuya feels a tingle down the back of his neck.

“I activate Polymerization,” Kachidoki says.  “I fuse Tenma and Hayate to special summon Idaten, the Conqueror Star.”

The air pinches, and Yuya feels a pop as though he’s just gone up in an airplane.  The two monsters mesh together, and when they come apart, a more massive figure takes the field, wielding a trident and clad in dark robes that swirl around it. Yuya can feel a faint pressure as though the monster is exerting its own gravitational field, and he tightens his grip on Beast-Eyes.  They have the same attack. If Kachidoki attacks, it will be mutual destruction — Yuya can ride this out.

“I equip Idaten with Magic Star Sword,” Kachidoki says, adding a new card to his disk.

The trident warps into a thick, deadly looking golden blade that glimmers in the light, little sparks flying off of it as though it’s flint striking a stone.

“Every time I add a spell card to my hand, I can discard it, and the equipped monster gains one hundred attack points,” Kachidoki says, and then bolts.

Yuya swears — Action Cards!  He’s going for Action Cards! Yuya urges Beast-Eyes into a run, streaking after him.  But Beast-Eyes is a little too big for the bamboo forest, crashing down through stalks that smack Yuya in the face and trying to maneuver with difficulty.  Yuya grits his teeth, trying to look for Action Cards — there! There’s one over his head!

“Beast-Eyes!” he shouts, and his monster reacts almost to his thoughts.  It cranks its head down and then flings it back up, rocketing Yuya upwards towards the card lodged in a bamboo stalk.  His fingers are almost there — he’s touched it!

His whole body rattles as something strikes hard into him, and he cries out, smashing through bamboo stalks as he crashes towards the ground.  Beast-Eyes catches him, cushioning his fall, but his body still aches from the impact.

Kachidoki leaps back down to the ground, Action Card in hand.

“I send one spell to the graveyard,” he says.

Magic Star Sword glows, and Idaten’s attack goes up.  Shoot! Yuya turns Beast-Eyes and bolts.

Kachidoki streaks past him — he’s smaller, and can move more quickly between the stalks.  Yuya searches for another Action Card. He has to find one to protect Beast-Eyes! There!

He reaches out past Beast-Eyes’s head, stretching for it.

A crack of pain shoots down his arm as Kachidoki leaps and kicks his wrist, snagging the Action Card on his pass through the air.

“A second card to the Graveyard.”

Yuya’s body aches, but he buckles down.  Two hundred extra attack points isn’t enough to do too much damage to him!  He needs to stop Kachidoki from getting another card!

He thinks quickly.  Using Beast-Eyes’s momentum, he taps his dragon and indicates it to keep running.  Then he slides down, hanging off the side of Beast-Eyes for a moment. He pushes off, and hits the ground, running in a different direction.  Maybe Kachidoki will think he’s still on Beast-Eyes, and won’t notice him bolting off!

There, another Action Card!

He leaps for it — and then pain blossoms over his back and he yells, stumbling and skidding past the card. A piece of bamboo clatters to the ground before him, having bounced off him him.  That _hurt!_

He struggles back to his feet, and finds Kachidoki picking up another card.  Now the panic is setting it. Yuya turns and runs again. This time he’ll beat Kachidoki!

This time Kachidoki doesn’t even wait for him to come up on an Action Card.  Yuya cries out as his elbow connects with his side, sending him careening into the stalks.  His body groans with pain as he bounces off and slams into the bamboo stalks.

Kachidoki picks up another Action Card.  Idaten is at thirty-four hundred attack points now!

Yuya picks himself up, gasping.  He can’t give up! He has to keep fighting!  His ears are roaring with the beat of his heart, and it almost drowns out the sudden, almost deafening silence from the crowd.  

Yuya stumbles forward.  Can’t give up — he can’t give up!  There! Another Action Card!

He sees the blur of speed beside him, and knows that Kachidoki is coming for him.  He braces himself, but throws himself forward anyway —

A roar echoes over the field, and Yuya feels something big crash through the stalks over him.  He yells and stumbles and hears another swear, and then he’s skidding forward face first through the dust and there’s sand spraying all over him and a tangle of limbs, but his fingers reach out and he grabs —

He gasps, eyes popping back open as the world settles again.  Kachidoki has his foot on top of his arm, but — but Yuya has his hand on the Action Card.  It’s his.

Kachidoki’s foot disappears, and Yuya gasps, popping back up to a sitting position.  He dusts the dirt from his face. It’s only then that he notices the tail that curls around him in a protective coil, the body that looms over the top of him and the hissing sound that echoes in his ears.

Yuya looks up — Beast Eyes is back, and is standing over him.  Kachidoki looks rumpled, as though he were struck by something when he went for Yuya, and his eyes are locked on Beast-Eyes instead of Yuya.  Did...did Beast-Eyes just protect him?

“Battle phase,” Kachidoki says then, harsh.  “Idaten attacks Beast-Eyes.”

Yuya braces himself, and Beast-Eyes roars.

“When Idaten attacks a monster with a level lower than itself, that monster’s attack is reduced to zero,” Kachidoki says.

Yuya flies to his feet.  Beast-Eyes has a lower level!!  He looks frantically at his Action Card, but it’s no good!

Beast-Eyes flings itself forward, pushing Yuya back with its tail, and meets Idaten in battle anyway.  Yuya skids across the dirt as the two monsters clash — and Idaten immediately cleaves through. Yuya cries out from the ripple of lost life points that crackles over his Duel Disk.

As the dust clears, Yuya is left alone.  Beast-Eyes is gone, and Kachidoki and his monster loom over him.  Yuya’s whole body aches with pain, and the crowd is silent. Yuya can’t hear a thing outside the roar of his own heartbeat.

 _I’m going to lose_.

His bracelet starts to get hot.

* * *

Yuzu stands up.  She can’t tear her eyes away.  Oh my god. Is this legal? This shouldn’t be legal! He’s physically hurting Yuya!  If that thrown bamboo stalk had hit a little differently, it could have stabbed him!

Her heart suddenly feels so much bigger in her chest, as though it’s swallowing her from the inside.  She feels Gongenzaka’s hand on her arm, telling her that it’s going to be all right, that Yuya’s going to be all right, but she can’t hear him.  She can only see Yuya’s panicked face, projected on all the screens, where he’s been left entirely alone and defenseless against this awful, violent opponent who will do anything to win!

It’s — this is awful.  This is unfair! He just wanted to duel to make people happy!  How dare Kachidoki Isao do this. How dare he!

How

Dare

He

Yuzu doesn’t realize that her pendulum is getting hot until it burns against her chest, and even then, she doesn’t flinch.  Gongenzaka lets out a tiny swear, but it’s not about her pendulum, it’s something about how the sky is suddenly getting very dark, and there wasn’t any rain in the forecast today?  Yuzu feels dizzy. Her throat is dry. She can’t take her eyes off of Yuya or the duel. There’s something gripping her, something fierce and thick like a living fog that rises up from inside her, and she thinks only one thing with pure focus.

_I want to hurt Kachidoki._

* * *

Ruri lets out a tiny gasp.  Reiji blinks, and glances at her.  He stands up with a snap when she doubles over in her seat, her face white and pale and her breaths thin.

“Ruri?  What’s wrong?”

Ruri doesn’t answer.  Her eyes are wide, her mouth open and panting.

Her eyes suddenly start to glow.

* * *

Yuya’s bracelet blinks on his wrist.  It feels like someone tapping on him, furiously trying to wake him up from some kind of dream.  An ominous sense settles over him like a spiderweb floating over his body.

“Are you going to surrender, or must I carve my victory into you further?” Kachidoki says.

The bracelet is so hot and tight all of a sudden it’s like it’s going to melt into his skin.  Yuya struggles to his feet. There’s a panic rushing through him. A panic that’s starting to form words, thoughts that are his but aren’t.

_I can’t lose I can’t lose I can’t lose_

_I can’t lose her AGAIN —_

Heat flares at his wrist where his deck is.  He reaches for his next card, and draws.

“I activate my already set Pendulum scales to bring back Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon and Performapal Silver Claw!” he shouts.

His monsters descend to the stage on either side of him.  Odd-Eyes roars, and there’s something in that roar, something alive, as though it’s more than a hologram.  As though the real dragon is in there, and it’s panicking too.

“I activate Trump Witch’s effect to fusion summon!”

He doesn’t know exactly what he’s doing — it’s like he’s dream walking.  He clasps his hands together in the pose that Sora taught him. It’s almost like a prayer, he thinks.

“Odd-Eyes and Silver Claw combine!” he shouts.  “Fusion Summon! Appear, Performapal Odd-Eyes Metal Claw!”

This monster is brand new — it’s not one he developed with Sora.  In fact, he’s not even entirely sure where it came from. Odd-Eyes stands on two legs now, with a face like a wolf’s and long, deadly looking metal claws that glimmer in the light.

“You’re wasting your time,” Kachidoki says.  “Your monster has less attack, and it’s a lower level.”

Yuya shakes his head.

“Odd-Eyes Metal Claw can’t be affected by other card effects on the turn it’s summoned!” he shouts.  “And then I activate this!”

He holds up the card he’s just drawn, and his bracelet heats to lava temperatures at his wrist.

“Will of Flowers!  For every spell card I discard this turn, Metal Claw’s attack doubles!”

Kachidoki’s eyes widen, and Yuya knows he’s done the math.  Yuya only needs two cards to double Metal Claw’s attack to be enough to one shot him.

“I discard the Action Card I picked up before.  Metal Claw jumps to six thousand attack!”

Kachidoki swears, and bolts.  Yuya leaps onto Metal Claw’s shoulder, and the great beast begins to crash through the forest.  Yuya can see Kachidoki blurring through the bamboo, but it’s hard — it’s suddenly really dark out here.  Where did all the clouds come from?

There!  An Action Card!

Kachidoki sees it at the same time.  He grits his teeth — but instead of going straight for the Action Card, he turns and streaks towards Yuya.  Yuya tenses with panic — he’s going to attack him again!

Metal Claw roars.  With one massive hand, and without Yuya saying a word, Metal Claw hits Kachidoki in midair.  Kachidoki’s eyes bulge with surprise, and he goes flying. Yuya is so dizzy that he can’t even think too hard about it.  He grabs the Action Card.

“I discard a second card!” he shouts.  “Now Metal Claw is at twelve thousand attack points!”

More than enough to take Kachidoki out.  Yuya and Metal Claw both spin to face Idaten.  A storm of petals suddenly whirls around Yuya, making his hair flap and almost concealing Metal Claw from sight.

“Metal Claw!  Attack Idaten!”

He holds tight to Metal Claw’s ruff as the monster roars.  Idaten tries to block the attack with its sword, but it’s no good.  Metal Claw rips through it with its claws like Idaten is made of paper, and petals fly everywhere.

Kachidoki’s life points hit zero.  The field spell vanishes, and Yuya slips down to the ground as Metal Claw disappears too.

His heart hammers in his chest.  He’s dizzy. The sky is blue again.

He blinks.  He looks down at his Duel Disk.

The card he used...it’s gone.  And...he thinks with a wrinkled brow and a faint headache.  He doesn’t even remember what it was called.

His bracelet feels ice cold, now, and he feels empty.  What happened? He’s...forgetting.

He remembers only one thing, and without checking on Kachidoki, he turns and runs towards the exit.  

_Yuzu.  I need to go see Yuzu._


	34. Y U Z U

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [ Laurel Bard the Melodious Knight ](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/178192456784/laurel-bard-the-melodious-knight-level-9-dark)

_ The avalanche program was introduced to the control group so that the driver would be able to react by avoiding the falling rocks.  However, when introduced to the Patroid program, the program began to glitch. It reacted as though it were a living organism, avoiding the falling rocks without prompting from the driver. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 2, Entry 39.



* * *

“Are you okay??”

Yuzu feels like he is not the one who should be asking that question.  She leaps at Yuya instead, grabbing him in a hug. She only releases him when he winces and makes a faint pained sound.

“I’m sorry!  Are you okay?  I should be the one asking you if you’re okay!”

“I’m fine, just a few bruises,” Yuya says, smiling brightly.  “But you? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine!  Why would I not be okay?  I wasn’t the one getting kicked around!”

Still, she can feel Gongenzaka’s eyes on her back, and she squirms with a bit of nerves.  Something...happened to her. When she was watching Yuya duel, something went weird. She remembers the headache, and the pressure in her chest.  She remembers the blurring of her vision and the sudden rising of rage in her belly that didn’t quite match even the awful sight in front of her. She remembers Gongenzaka taking her out of the stands when the kids started looking at her funny, and she remembers walking back with a clearer head, but she doesn’t...remember the middle.

“I’m okay,” she says, seeing how pale and nervous Yuya looks when he looks at her.  “I promise! I was just worried about you.”

He hugs her this time, and she carefully hugs him back.

“It’s okay,” he says.  “It’s all okay.”

It’s not, she thinks.  But she’s not sure why.

She quickly extracts herself from his arms.

“I should go,” she says.  “My duel is next.”

He squeezes her elbows.

“Good luck,” he says, smiling.

She laughs, more to reassure him than out of any actual mirth.

“Against that idol chick?  I probably won’t need any,” she says.  “But I’ll do my best!”

* * *

“And now, let us welcome to the stage two of our finest young duelists, Naname Mikiyo of Duel Girls Club, and Hiragi Yuzu of You Show Duel School!  What dazzling display will these talented performers show us today?”

Yuzu doesn’t feel much like a performer at the moment.  But she pastes on a smile and waves at the crowd, a little embarrassed to see that at least one person is holding up a sign with a drawing of her on it.  And it’s not even her dad. Her duel with Masumi must have been a memorable one for everyone.

She hops up onto the field, and walks towards the middle.  Where’s her opponent? She got announced first, and she’s not even going to...

Her thoughts grind to a halt as a ridiculous burst of pink colored smoke bursts out of the opposite hallway.  Three pairs of girls in skimpy skirts and tops roll out on roller skates, gliding off in opposite directions of each other and mirroring each other’s dance moves as they go.  From the middle of the column of skaters, a short, cute girl in a frilly dress and an obnoxiously over the top butterfly-shaped hairstyle pops out. She hops and bounces, spinning as she waves to her suddenly screaming fans.  Yuzu’s ears almost hurt from the section of boys who are suddenly on their feet, waving fans with the girl’s face on it and yelling.

Naname Mikiyo blows them all a kiss, and one of them appears to faint.  Yuzu can’t help but roll her eyes. Oh god. Idols.

Mikiyo giggles as she hops onto the stage, and then produces a microphone from somewhere inside her ensemble.

“Hello everyone!” she squeals, in an affected high pitched voice.  “How are you all feeling today!”

“Energetic!” her fan club screams, making Yuzu think that’s some kind of catchphrase for her.

Mikiyo makes a very obviously fake surprised expression, putting a hand in front of her mouth.  Then she smiles and spins.

“What a coincidence!  Me too!”

Oh god.  Can they just get this duel over with already?  She wants to go pound on Reiji’s door and force him to explain things to her right now.  She’s positive that whatever awful, squeezing sensation she had felt during Yuzu’s duel had something to do with the pressure she’d felt when she was around Ruri and the other girl.  There must be a connection, and Reiji must know something!

She looks furtively into the stands, though it’s hard to pick Yuya out among the sea of faces.  While Mikiyo continues working up her crowd, Yuzu just smiles, and raises a hand in a wave towards where she knows You Show is sitting.  She might feel awful, but that’s no reason to let anyone know.

Mikiyo finally stops posturing, and spins to face Yuzu with a big grin.

“I’ve heard you’re a fairy duelist as well!” she says.  “Let’s have ourselves a grand duel, my dear, and see who’s the most talented performer of the two of us!”

“Sure,” Yuzu says, cracking a smile as she turns her disk on.  “I could use a bit of a challenge to take my mind off things.”

“Let’s begin this action duel!” Nico Smiley shouts.  “Action field on!”

The field deploys.  Thick clouds coat the ground, wisping around her in heavy waves, like slow moving water.  A grand temple takes up the field to her right, with large stone steps rising up to heavy wooden doors.  Other than that, an endless sky spreads out in all directions. An appropriate field for fairy users, Yuzu thinks.

The sound to begin rings, and Yuzu raises her disk.

“You’re welcome to go first, dear,” Mikiyo says with a wink.  There’s something condescending about her, but Yuzu thinks she probably shouldn’t take it personally.  She just needs to win, and wipe that smug grin off of Mikiyo’s face.

“I’ll start off by setting a monster face down,” Yuzu says.  “That ends my turn!”

“What a poor opening act!” Mikiyo laughs.  “How are you supposed to dazzle like that.”

Ugh.  Yuzu rolls her eyes and waits for Mikiyo to continue her turn.  The girl smiles and spins to face her crowd.

“All right everybody!  I need your help! Let’s draw a card together!”

She spins back to face Yuzu and smiles even bigger.

“Our turn!” she cries, and her fan club and some of the crowd shouts with her.  

Yuzu’s starting to feel a little uncomfortable now.  Mikiyo has complete control of the crowd so far, and she’s right — Yuzu’s first turn was a sham.  She needs to put her You Show teachings into practice! 

“I normal summon Freya, Spirit of Victory!” Mikiyo cries.

A short, cute fairy girl with pom poms pops out of the clouds, spinning and shaking her pom poms before jumping into the air and posing.  The crowd yells with approval.

“I then activate the continuous spell Court of Justice!”

A glowing disc rises into the air behind Mikiyo, with a pillar of light beneath it.

“When I have a level one fairy, I can special summon a fairy from my hand once per turn.  Freya, introduce our newest addition to the stage!”

Freya shakes its pompoms, dancing around the pillar of light until two odd-shaped creatures pop out, one a stout, round pink creature, and the other a chubby green shape.  

“I special summon Gellenduo!  And with Freya’s cheering power, Gellenduo gains four hundred attack!”

She laughs and blows a kiss with both hands to the crowd.

“Just like I get a boost from your cheering power, too!”

Uuugh.  Yuzu bites back her grimace.  Mikiyo spins back to face her, and points at Yuzu with a wink.

“Gellenduo, take care of her face down monster for me!”

The twin oddly shaped fairies spin around each other, and drill forward towards Yuzu’s face down.  Yuzu swears and dives into the clouds. Action Card! If she can just get — 

She isn’t quick enough.  She swears again as the pair of fairies crash through her face down Serenade.  Serenade lets out a trilling cry, and then shatters to the graveyard. Yuzu rolls from the breeze of the impact as Gellenduo returns in front of Mikiyo.

“And now, Freya will attack directly!” Mikiyo says.  “With her boost, she’s only at five hundred attack, but some’s better than none!”

Yuzu bolts for the stairs of the temple.  There! An Action Card!

She grabs it, spins on the stairs, and plays it.

“I play Evasion!  Your attack misses!”

Freya stumbles on the stairs, and falls face first in front of Yuzu.  People on the other half of the stadium from Mikiyo’s fan club laugh. Yuzu lets out a little sigh of relief as Freya hops back up — but then pauses as she notices something weird.  Something so strange that she might be imagining it. Did Freya look...embarrassed?

Just before the monster’s head spins away from her and it runs back to Mikiyo, Yuzu could have sworn she’d seen a hint of mortified tears in the monster’s eyes.  Yuzu frowns.

“Aww, too bad, Freya,” Mikiyo sighs with a little too much emphasis.  “But better luck next time!”

Yuzu’s turn.  She throws the thoughts of what she might or might not have seen away.  She has to make up for lost ground, and do better.

“Draw!” she cries.  That’s right. She has to smile!  She has to try and be cheerful, and impress the crowd.  That’s what You Show is about! She’s definitely better than some old idol at that!  “Everyone, if I could have your attention for the moment!”

She raises up both hands, and she can feel the crowd’s eyes turning to her.

“Let me introduce you to some talented friends of mine!” Yuzu calls.  “By the effect of Solo the Melodious Songstress, I special summon her from my hand to the field, since you have monsters and I don’t!”

Solo appears on the stairs beside her and trills with a courteous bow.  Yuzu and Solo bow in tandem, and the crowd cheers. Yuzu smiles and pops back up, holding up her next card.

“Since I have a Melodious monster on my field, I can then special summon Canon the Melodious Diva from my hand!  Solo, please welcome your duet partner!”

Canon appears next, bowing deeply to the crowd and to Yuzu before bobbing back up.  Yuzu bows back, and then spins back to the crowd with a smile.

“Thank you!  Now would you all join me in welcoming our next act?  Put your hands together for!”

She flicks her duel disk.  Canon and Solo both bow, trill, and they clasp hands and turn to light. 

“Please welcome, Shopina, the Melodious Maestra!”

The light glows and melds together, and Shopina emerges, resplendent in her wide, puffy dress and her coiffed hair.  She taps her baton on the air and clears her throat. The crowd cheers, and both Yuzu and Shopina take a bow.

“When Shopina is summoned, I can add another Light monster from my grave to my hand, so I’m adding Canon!”

Her card reappears in her fingers as Shopina raises her baton, making a symbol in the air that hovers for a moment in a glowing light before fading.

“All right, Shopina!  Let’s show them what we can do!  Attack Gellenduo with Revolutionary Etude!”

Shopina raises her baton once more, directing an invisible orchestra,.  Then light sprays from the tip of her baton. Gellenduo scurries about, the two of them bonking into each other as they attempt to run in circles.  But then they both pop up, and jump up as though to block the ray of light from hitting Mikiyo. They shatter, and the card goes to the graveyard. The crowd lets out a cheer, and Yuzu winks and waves at them.

“Aww,” Mikiyo says.  “You defeated them! But that’s okay.  We’ll have much cuter friends to join us soon!”

Yuzu’s not sure why, but something in her twitches.  Something about the way that Mikiyo talks is rubbing her the wrong way.  Yuzu draws back closer to Shopina as she passes the turn, ready for the two of them to go for an Action Card.  She’s sure there are more on the roof of the temple, and if she and Shopina fly up, they’ll find them in no time.  In the strange way that Real Solid Vision does, she can feel Shopina almost reacting to her thoughts, moving beside her and placing her free hand against Yuzu’s back, ready to boost her up at a moment’s notice.

“It’s our turn!” Mikiyo cries along with her adoring crowd.  “Everyone! Give me your strength again with your cheers, and I’ll never lose!”

The crowd cheers for her, too, and Yuzu gets ready to move.  Mikiyo spins back.

“I’ll summon a second Freya!” she says. 

A copy of the first girl with the pompoms appears, and both fairies’ attack goes up.  Yuzu grits her teeth — Freya can’t be attacked while there’s another fairy on the field.  Mikiyo’s created a lock.

“Perfect stage composition,” Mikiyo giggles, striking a pose in between the two Freyas, who pose with their pompoms out to frame Mikiyo.  Yuzu feels that twinge of irritation again. What is annoying her? She can’t put her finger on it. “And then by Court of Justice’s effect, I’ll special summon a faery from my hand!  Come out, Guardian Angel Joan!”

The air splits with light, and an angel descends.  She’s clad in gold, with resplendent wings and a glowing visage.  Mikiyo strikes another pose in the newfound lighting that Joan sends, and Yuzu gets annoyed again.  But what’s more pressing is that Joan has more attack then Shopina.

Reacting to a mental thought that Yuzu hasn’t even fully formed, Shopina scoops Yuzu up into her arms and dives into the sky, rocketing towards the roof.

“Everyone, let me hear your voices!” Mikiyo calls.  “It makes me stronger! Guardian Angel Joan, attack Shopina!”

Shopina throws Yuzu as hard as she can into the air, and Yuzu spins head over heels, looking for a place to land.  She grabs hold of the edge of the roof just as the impact of Shopina’s destruction sends a blast of wind. She yells as she loses hold, tumbling back down into the clouds.  Luckily, the clouds are soft enough to cushion her fall, but she’s too dizzy to pick herself back up right away. 

“Shopina!” she shouts.

“When Joan destroys a monster, I gain life points equal to the attack of the monster it destroyed!”

Joan puts her hands together, and a ray of light like a spotlight falls down over Mikiyo.  Her fans cheer when she laughs and spins in the spotlight, and then she points at Yuzu.

“And now for a double Freya attack!” Mikiyo shouts.

Yuzu doesn’t have the time to pick herself up and look for more Action Cards.  Two pompoms strike her right in the chest, sending her rolling backwards across the clouds.

She finally gets herself up and gasps, spraying clouds everywhere.

The Freyas retreat to their places on either side of Mikiyo, and Joan hovers just overhead.  Mikiyo is still waving and posing, laughing and clapping and blowing kisses at her fans who cheer back at her.

Yuzu struggles up to her feet.  Shopina had tried so hard to help Yuzu, and she’d wasted Shopina’s sacrifice.  She...

She understands, all of a sudden, why Mikiyo is annoying her.

Mikiyo looks up with a very condescending smile as Yuzu struggles back to face her.

“You’re using them like props,” she says.  The words somehow felt like they were saying themselves, and she wans’t entirely sure where they were coming from.  “Your monsters. You’re just using them like props. To set the stage for  _ you _ .”

Mikiyo actually looks surprised for real this time, staring at Yuzu with a tilted head.

“Well, what else am I supposed to be doing, dear?” she says.  “This is my show, after all!”

“They’re the ones fighting for you,” Yuzu says.  “They’re the ones doing all the work!”

Mikiyo gives her a kind of almost pitying smile.

“Honey, dearest,” she says.  “They’re only holograms. This is a  _ show _ .  Besides, darling, didn’t you say during your own duel with Miss Kotsu?  The You Show way is to duel using your monsters?”

“To duel  _ with _ your monsters,” Yuzu says.  “With them. To respect them and what they contribute, and to not shy away from battling  _ alongside _ them!”

“You’ve got such a sweet imagination,” Mikiyo giggles.  “Well, let me know how that works out for you! I set a card and end my turn.”

It feels like there’s lava bubbling beneath Yuzu’s skin.  She feels sick. Why does the air feel so heavy all of a sudden, and why does it feel like she’s tasting metal?

“My turn,” she says, feeling the monotone that weighs her words down.  She has to win. She has to win. She has to win.

She pushes the heaviness aside.  What’s wrong with her? She needs to focus on showmanship, on fighting alongside her monsters.  On being the example!

“I activate the spell card Composition!” Yuzu says.  “If I have no Pendulum monsters in either of my zones, I can add two Melodious Pendulums with different names of less than two thousand attack to my hand from my deck!”

Her cards poke out of the deck and she grabs them.

“I’ll set them both right away!  Scale two Coro, the Melodious Minstrel, and scale ten Hildegard, the Melodious Songsmith!”

Her two monsters rise up in pillars of light, the clouds and sky taking on a darker, ambient tone from their gemlike hues.

“I can now special summon Melodious monsters between level three and nine!  Come forth, my friends!”

Three pillars of light descend from the giant woven hole in the sky above, coalescing into her monsters.

“Come forth, Mozarta, the Melodious Maestra!  Canon, the Melodious Diva! And Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight!”

All three monsters take up positions in a half circle behind her, with Bloom Bard right behind her.  She feels a whispering whistle past her ears, calming her, bringing with it the scent of flowers. She can do this!

“I activate Coro’s effect!  Once per turn, I can fusion summon with monsters on my field!  Canon and Mozarta, come together!”

The two monsters lifted up from either side of Yuzu, clasping hands above her before swirling together.

“Angel’s song!  Supreme genius! With the guidance of the baton, gather your power!  Fusion summon! Now come here to the stage and hear the song of victory!  Appear, Bloom Diva, the Melodious Choir!”

Another gust of flower scented wind caresses her pigtails as the small pretty being descends beside her.

Mikiyo smiles and tilts her head.

“And how do you expect to win like that?  Neither of your monsters are strong enough to defeat Joan, and even if you could, my Freyas would protect me!”

Yuzu grabs hold of Bloom Bard’s hand, and the monster swings Yuzu into her arms.  They fly upwards towards the roof of the temple, and immediately, Yuzu spots an Action Card.  With Bloom Bard holding onto her legs, Yuzu flips upside down, snags the card, and immediately sends it to the graveyard.

“By sending a spell card to my graveyard, I can activate Hildegard’s Pendulum effect!  Once per turn, I can give the effect of one of my monsters to another one of my monsters!  I’m giving Bloom Bard’s effect to Bloom Diva!”

Her Pendulum monster hums an eerie sounding tune, and Bloom Bard glows.  The two of them swing back down to the ground and Yuzu lands expertly, as Bloom Bard raises her sword and a light emerges from it.  The ball of light descends into Bloom Diva’s waiting hands, and it accepts the sphere into its chest.

“Now I can activate Bloom Bard’s effect as Bloom Diva’s!  And I’ll activate it now. For every monster I remove from play in the graveyard, Bloom Diva gains an extra attack!  And I have six monsters in the graveyard!”

The spiritual forms of the Melodious monsters in the graveyard all appear around Bloom Diva.

“Let’s all give Bloom Diva some of our power!” Yuzu cries, both to herself, her monsters, and the audience.  “Battle phase! When Bloom Diva attacks a special summoned monster, you take the damage that I would have taken!  Reflect Shout!”

Bloom Diva opens her lips and lets out a torrent of song.  The other Melodious songs are twined within it in a beautiful chorus, and the whirlwind of sound bears down on Joan.

“I activate my trap card, Faery’s Mound!” Mikiyo says.  “When I have a fairy type monster and I’m attacked by a fairy type monster, I can destroy all of your attack position monsters!”

Yuzu chokes.  It’s too late to take back Bloom Diva’s attack!

A great earthen mound rises from the ground beneath Mikiyo, taking her and her monsters up into the air like a stage.  Bloom Diva’s shout hits the mound, and instead of sinking inside, bounces off. Yuzu throws her hands in front of her face against the blow — she feels the whirl of Bloom Bard’s clothes as the creature throws itself in front of Yuzu.

A distant scream, more like a memory than anything else, echoes in Yuzu’s ears as she stares at her now empty field.

“My stage is perfect now!” Mikiyo giggles.  “So! How did your style end up working against mine?”

Yuzu can’t hear anything except the pounding of her own heart in her ears.  Her fingers clench around the last card in her hand. What is she supposed to do now?  She...she failed. She’s going to lose to that stuck up, stupid idol who treats her monsters like things!

The card in her hand gets hot, and she gasps.  Her eyes twitch down.

She’s not sure what card she had in her hand before, but it wasn’t this.  As though she’s in a dream, she doesn’t question it. She simply moves.

“When a monster is destroyed on my side of the field and sent to the graveyard, I can activate the effect of the card in my hand,” she says.  “I special summon Laurel Bard, the Melodious Knight, by destroying all other cards on my field.”

She hears another distant memory scream as her pendulum monsters shatter, and the new one emerges.

She looks...like Bloom Bard.  But there’s something different.

Her skin is bone white, her clothes a sleek gray.  There’s armor on her shoulders, and her hat is decorated with dark red flowers and bone white feathers.  Her long black hair falls to the ground, and there are laurel leaves growing from it instead of flowers. Her eyes, like Bloom Bard’s, are shadowed by the brim of her hat.

“When Laurel Bard is summoned successfully, I can destroy all cards on the field,” Yuzu says.  “Requiem of Victory!”

Laurel Bard raises her sword over her head.  A discordant maelstrom arises around the blade, black and jagged.  It blots out Joan’s golden light, and Mikiyo lets out a cry as the faery mound crumbles underneath her, and she has to stumble back down to the clouds, which are quickly turning gray and roiling.  Lightning flares inside of a few of them over head, and a distant buzz of thunder fills the air.

“Laurel Bard gains five hundred attack for every monster removed from play,” Yuzu says.  “There are six monsters removed from play, so that’s three thousand attack.”

Mikiyo’s eyes widen as Laurel Bard’s attack jumps to six thousand, as her sword grows wider and the metal starts to turn to a smoky black.

“Laurel Bard, attack directly,” Yuzu says.  “Final Solo.”

Laurel Bard plants her feet, lowers her sword — and then blurs forward.  Mikiyo barely has time to squeak before the black sword sends her flying.  Her life points hit zero in one swoop.

The field disappears, leaving Yuzu alone for a moment, standing in the middle of the field to a silent crowd.  Laurel Bard has not yet vanished. For a single, unnerving moment, she feels like the monster is staring at her.  And she feels cold.

Then it, too, disappears.

“Um...Hiragi Yuzu is the winner!  Congratulations!”

There’s a spattering of applause, a few boos from Mikiyo’s section, but mostly, there seems to be a somber silence. 

Yuzu feels like she should feel bad about it.

But as she turns silently back to the way back into the stands, she realizes: she doesn’t.


	35. R E I J I / Y U Z U

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Composition](https://78.media.tumblr.com/7cfce29b0351c2f0edd5000a89b4c272/tumblr_pfkxy25ys41wgflrqo1_540.png)

_On official recommendation of our board of directors, the focus of our research has been altered.  We will now refocus our efforts on the application of Real Solid Vision to the Duel Monsters program specifically._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 3, Entry 22.



* * *

 

“Why the hell is Ruri in the hospital?”

Reiji sighs — another headache.

“She’s fine,” he says, turning to face the red-faced Shun.  “She’s well enough to protest my placing her there. But after the second incident in the stands, I think she needs attention.”

Shun glares.  He had not joined Reiji and Ruri in the stands, having been either dueling in the tournament or joining LDS in searching for Yuuri.  Reiji’s not sure how to begin explaining to him what exactly happened to his younger sister. He fixes his glasses. Beside him, Reira clings to his scarf.  The child followed him out of the stands upon finishing his most recent duel, and Reiji had had to shoo his mother away from bustling Reira off again. It is no issue to have him around.

“Kurosaki.  Might I ask you: has your sister ever had any medical conditions prior to this point?”

Shun blinks, clearly taken aback by the question.

“No, Ruri’s always been healthy,” he says.

“No incidences of seizure or epilepsy?  Migraines? Hallucinations?”

“You’re starting to worry me.  What _happened_ to her?”

Reiji glances at the door beside them.  Inside is where Ruri is currently undergoing a brief medical examination, one that she insisted she didn’t need.  She had just had a bit of a headache, she said. That’s all. But Reiji had seen more than that.

Had Shun been anyone else, he would have told him that it was classified until her examination was through. But this is his sister.  And he’ll force his way in one way or another if Reiji doesn’t tell him what he needs to hear.

“During both Sakaki Yuya’s and Hiragi Yuzu’s duels, your sister underwent a curious condition,” he says.  “I don’t know how to classify it. She claims she only had a headache and a bit of trouble breathing, as in a panic attack.”

He frowns.

“On the outside, however...Kurosaki, I had to physically restrain your sister.”

Shun’s eyes bulge.

“What are you talking about?”

“During Sakaki Yuya’s duel against Kachidoki Isao especially, Ruri grew suddenly aggressive.  She tried to climb out of the stands towards the duel. She was speaking as though in a fit, though it was impossible to make out what she was saying.  She attempted to bite me when I tried to hold her back. She remembers nothing of the incident now.”

Shun looks terribly pale now.  He’s shaking slightly.

“I’m going to talk to her,” he says, pushing towards the door.  Reiji stops him.

“Please do not interrupt my staff.  I assure you, Kurosaki, that she is being taken care of with the best medical assistance available.”

He thinks that Shun might fling his arm off and push inside anyway, but it seems that this news has shaken him more than Reiji could have imagined.  He stops, hovering in front of the door, as though afraid of what he’ll see inside. Reiji lightens his touch. Shun comes off as an abrasive, angry young man, but he’s only that — young.  Even the year he has on Reiji does not negate the fact that he is barely more than a child, a child who’s had to see hell before his eyes and lost more than Reiji can imagine.

“We are taking care of her,” he says again, softly.  “I promise you, I will allow no harm to come to her.”

“That’s not a promise anyone can keep,” Shun says harshly, his throat sounding ragged.

Reiji thinks to say something else, though he’s not sure what, when his Duel Disk buzzes.  He lifts it to his eyes. There’s a call from his control room. He answers it.

“What’s wrong?” he asks.

“It’s an emergency, president — we’ve just picked up signals all around the city of a dimensional transfer.  This is the only video footage we’ve gotten.”

An image flashes across the screen, and Reiji glares at it.  Shun glances down at the sound of the voice, and his face immediately goes red with anger.

“That’s Academia,” he swears.  “Obelisk Force! Those are the elites!”

“Presumably here to collect Yuuri,” Reiji says, gritting his teeth.  “If citizens get caught in between...”

Quickly, quickly, quickly, he has to think quickly.  How to find Yuuri, get him to a safe location, and repel the invaders with minimal loss?  Take into account that Yuuri will also likely be a wild card, possibly causing just as much damage to the city as his pursuers....

“Activate the Battle City protocol,” Reiji says to the man on the other side of the screen.  “All sectors. Have the streets cleared. Introduce the Pendulum algorithm — no, I don’t care if it hasn’t been perfected yet.  We’re going to need all of the assistance we can get. I’m going to make an announcement.”

“What are you doing?” Shun says.

Reiji’s eyes narrow as his subordinate hangs up, rushing to do as he was told.

“I’m changing the tournament rules,” he says.  “We’re entering a city-wide Battle Royale mode.”

* * *

“And that ends our second round of duels!  We’ll pick up again tomorrow with —”

Nico stops in the middle of his announcement as a woman in a tech crew hat runs up into the box with him, whispering in his ear.  Nico’s eyes widen. Yuzu frowns. She’d just stood up, planning to get ready to head home with the others now that the duels were over.  And _maybe_ stop by LDS to see if Reiji could deign to them now.

“I have a correction!  If all current winners of our duels could head down to the main field; there’s been a change in the tournament schedule!”

Yuzu and Yuya look at each other.  Yuya looks concerned, but Yuzu’s having trouble feeling much of anything at the moment.  That last duel wiped her out. She’s not even sure exactly what’s wrong with her.

“I guess we should go?” Yuya says.  “Are you okay?”

He looks really worried.  She’s worrying him — she needs to stop that.  She smiles.

“Yeah,” she says.  “I’m fine. Just annoyed.  I was hoping to go get some lunch.”

Yuya smiles, but she can tell he’s not wholly convinced.  Gongenzaka huffs.

“Just like a big company like LDS to change things at a moment’s notice,” he grunts.  “I wonder what the problem is.”

Yuzu shrugs.  Still, when Gongenzaka says that, her mind starts to whir.  Why couldn’t Reiji speak to them this morning? What does he know about Ruri, and the other girl, and Ruri’s claim that there are four dimensions, one of which is invading the others?  And how does this play into the sudden shift in the tournament?

Something strange is happening to her body lately, and it all started the day she met Ruri.  A tremor of fear passes through her.

Yuya quietly takes her hand.  He smiles at her, and then waves to the kids before leading her and Gongenzaka out of the stands and down towards the stairs.

Most of the contenders have already joined the main field below.  Yuzu recognizes most of them, of course, as she’s been paying attention to the duels.  There’s the ninja who defeated Mieru in a single turn, and another boy who looks a lot like him.  There’s one boy who looks like he comes from the same school as Kachidoki, a girl in a pretty dress like Mikiyo, and a rotund boy holding a fishing rod over his shoulder.  There’s a trio of foreign looking students, probably from LDS branch schools, and three boys in full suits of armor. And then there’s a more familiar face. Hokuto sends the three of them a cocky smirk, raising a hand in a wave.

“Good to see you all again,” he says.  “Ready to get your asses kicked again?”

He seems surprised when Yuya replies with a big smile.

“I’m looking forward to a rematch,” he says cheerily.  “But don’t think that I’m going to be the same pushover as last time!”

Hokuto blinks with a bit more surprise.  Then he grins.

“Glad to see you’re not a sore loser,” he says.  “So this is the top sixteen, huh? Not what I was expecting.”

Yuzu glances around, counting in her head.

“Fifteen,” she says, frowning.  “Where’s...”

From one of the opposite hallways, another shape bolts out.  He looks winded, as though he ran five blocks to join them, but he slows and joins the group, albeit standing off a clear few feet away from them.  It’s Kurosaki Shun, Yuzu realizes with a start. He’s here, too!

“There he is,” Hokuto says, rolling his eyes.  “Who shows up late like that?”

Yuzu wants to run over to him right now and shake him down for some answers.  Ruri was at LDS, and Yuya told Yuzu that Kurosaki Shun seemed to know and work with Reiji when he found them that night.  Kurosaki Shun must know more about what’s going on!

But they have the whole auditorium staring them down right now, and it’s not a good time.  She’ll wait and follow him after this announcement.

“Please everyone, give it up for your top sixteen!” Nico shouts, and a roar of applause rains down over them.  “Now, if you could give your attention to the screen! This tournament is about to jump to the next level!”

Yuzu looks up at the big screens all around the stadium.  A video feed of a different part of the city appears on each one.  The crowd gasps, and Yuzu’s eyes widen and her mouth drops open, too.  On the screen, several large, glowing domes all slide out of hidden panels beneath the streets, or against the sides of buildings.  A rainbow glimmer shines over the inside of the domes, and then, light spews forth. The city vanishes beneath a thick layer of holographic magic, as on one screen, a jungle sprouts up between the buildings and fills in the park with tall, exotic trees, on another, the whole uptown area turns to a blisteringly cold tundra, downtown turns into an ancient ruin with crumbling temples, and the shopping district becomes a bubbling land of sweltering lava.

“Top Sixteen!  The next phase of this tournament will be a Battle Royale the spans the city!”

Yuzu can’t help but gape.  This is — this is overwhelming!  How long has that technology been hiding beneath the surface of her unassuming city?  Reiji is putting on a show the likes of which has never been seen before! And the question of _why_ niggles at her like a single panicked butterfly trapped in her stomach.

“Not only that!  But the field has been scattered with not just Action Cards, but Pendulum cards as well!”

“What??” Yuzu blurts.  But no one hears her, even Yuya.  They’re all too busy marveling at what the city has become.

“The rules are as follows!  You must search for the field specific Pendulum cards! Once you have two, you are eligible to challenge each other to a duel!  The winner will take the loser’s Pendulum Cards. The final eight with the most Pendulum cards at the end of the time limit will move on to the next round!”

Yuzu looks down at Yuya.  Yuya’s face has screwed up with determination.  His fists tighten. Yuzu feels her chest squeeze.

“Yuya,” she whispers.  “Don’t you wonder why they’re doing this all of a sudden?”

Yuya blinks, and looks back down at Yuzu.  He searches her expression for a moment. Then he smiles, and nudges her with his elbow.

“Don’t worry,” he says.  “Whatever the reason for this, I’m sure it’s going to be all right.”

“I’m sure Reiji’s planning something with this,” she whispers back.  “I...Yuya. I feel...like something bad is going to happen.”

She can’t push back the fright that she’s sure is in her eyes.  Yuya’s eyes soften. He reaches for her hand and squeezes it.

“Whatever happens, we can handle it,” he says. “Don’t worry.  Let’s stick together during the tournament as long as we can. We’ll get to the bottom of it, Yuzu.”

Yuzu laces her fingers back into Yuya’s and squeezes back.

“Duelists, get ready!  The timer starts in ten...nine...”

The doors of the stadium lower, opening them up into the new, city-wide battle field.  Yuzu’s resolve hardens.

“Don’t disappear,” she says.

“That’s my line,” Yuya says back.

“GO!”


	36. Y U Y A / Y U Z U

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Hildegard the Melodious Songsmith](https://66.media.tumblr.com/949a7ad1d30801cb9ca39ca89f68de3e/tumblr_pfxzqw6Zv91wgflrqo1_540.png)

_ Log date 1-9-xxxx: Temperature recordings from prototype 8B indicate that the Real Solid Vision monster is producing its own body heat.  Further research required. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 5, Entry 19.



* * *

“Which way first?”

Yuya looks back and forth, considering.  This part of the city still looks like a city, but at the end of each side of the road, that changes.  To their right, he can see a cold gray sky melting out of the blue, and there’s a jut of ice that sticks out of the ground.  To the left, a haze of rippling heat coats the entry into the lava field like a veil.

Yuzu bites her lip, looking back and forth too.  The other contestants have already scattered off in other directions, but Yuya didn’t see where everyone went, so he can’t strategize based on that.  All he knows for sure is that he saw Gongenzaka going towards the ice field.

“Well, the smarter thing to do would be for us to split up and cover more ground,” Yuzu says.

He can tell by the way her voice cracks that she doesn’t like this ‘smarter idea.’  And he doesn’t either — if Yuzu’s hunch is correct, and his own sense of some ominous vibe in the air is right, he’s starting to wonder what the rationale behind this sudden Battle Royale is.  Akaba Reiji knows more than he’s told them, and Yuya doesn’t really like the idea of separating from Yuzu when they’re the only ones who really know that something is up.

“Let’s go to the lava field,” Yuya says.  “It’s closer to LDS. Maybe we can go bother Akaba for answers.”

Yuzu lets out a thin smile at that.  But then she nods.

“I think that’s a good idea,” she says.  “Let’s keep looking for those Pendulum cards, too.  If it turns out we’re both crazy and nothing weird is happening, it would suck to get kicked out of the tournament.”

He laughs, and claps her on the shoulder.

“Race you!” he shouts, and bolts down the street.

He can hear her sneakers pattering after him against the concrete.  A few minutes later, a rush of heat washes over the two of them, dry and crackling.  He feels like he needs a drink of water already — this field is super real, even for Real Solid Vision!

The concrete turns to rough earth, hard and uneven.  He slows as the ground starts to become more treacherous, and as they approach the actual pits of bubbling lava.  Heat radiates off of the glowing pools in hazy waves. Yuya keeps his eyes on the ground, casting all around him. He needs to make sure he doesn’t miss a Pendulum card, or worse, trip and fall into that lava.  It’s...just an Action Field, but still, he has a feeling he doesn’t want to fall in.

“Ah!  Found one!” Yuzu calls.

He looks back over her shoulder.  Yuzu has climbed up a few feet on a rock wall where canyons are starting to jut out of the ground.  She plucks a Pendulum card from a crack in the wall and then slides back down.

“I’ve gotta pick up my game,” Yuya says, looking around.  Oh! There’s one!

He grabs a card out from under a rock.  They look pretty generic; they’re probably all Reiji could make on short notice.  How  _ did _ he make these, anyway?  He’d had his own when he dueled Yuzu, but...where did he learn to make them?

Yuya and Yuzu search for a few more minutes, walking around lava pits and clambering up walls to find Pendulum cards.  They don’t see any other duelists wandering around, so it seems that they might have been the only ones to come this far. 

It’s hard to tell where they’re going when their city has been changed so drastically, but Yuya thinks they’re still heading in the direction of LDS.  He keeps looking up through the haze of smoke and heat to see if he can pick the tall building out of the skyline.

“Found my last one!” Yuya cries triumphantly.  He grabs the card. Then he looks up, blinking. Huh?  Where’d Yuzu go?

He turns in a circle.  He’s on top of one of the plateaus, so he should be able to see her.  She didn’t go that far, did she? She couldn’t have.

He peers over the other side of the plateau.  Oh! There she is! She’s pulling another card out from under a rock.  That means she must have two, too!

Yuya cups his hands around his mouth to call out to her when a shadow catches his attention.  He flinches instinctively, but there’s no attack. He blinks with surprise at the boy standing next to him — where did he come from??  He’s dressed like a ninja, in a blue scarf and dark clothes, and he looks very hot in this arena.

“Oh!  Geez, you scared me,” Yuya says.  “You’re one of the top sixteen, right?  Did you get two Pendulum cards? I’d be happy to duel you, but let me tell my friend where I am first!”

The young man shakes his head quickly.

“I am sorry, Sakaki Yuya-dono.  But there is very little time to explain.  I need you to come with me, quickly.”

* * *

“Ah, there’s a duelist!!  I knew I’d find you eventually!”

Yuzu doesn’t recognize the high-pitched voice, but it immediately makes her feel tense.  She looks up. Standing on top of a nearby jut of rock is the cute girl in a pink dress that Yuzu saw in the top sixteen.  She’s having trouble remembering her name.

The girl smiles brightly, but there almost looks like there’s a razor sharp edge to it.  She flicks back her bouncy brown bangs, her pigtails curled at the ends.

“And if it isn’t Hiragi Yuzu-san!  I was hoping we’d get a chance to duel!”

The girl primly slides down from the top of the wall, landing easily, as though she’s made of air.  Yuzu tenses when she approaches.

“Aren’t you from Mikiyo’s school?” Yuzu says.

The girl’s eyes light up.

“Did you recognize me?” she giggles.  “You’re right! I’m Akahane Hirari. It’s nice to meet you!”

Yuzu hesitantly takes the hand that’s offered to her, shaking it.  She’s surprised at how hard that Hirari grips it, and tenses up at the way that her eyes bore into Yuzu’s.  Another big smile crosses her face.

“I suppose I should be thanking you,” she purrs.  “Mikiyo-chan was our top star, and it’s ever so hard to climb the ranks in the Duel Girls’ Club! You’ve given me a big big chance!”

Her fingers crush into Yuzu’s hand and Yuzu gasps in spite of herself.

“If I beat you, then I’ll definitely become the top star this time!”

Yuzu rips her hand out of Hirari’s grip, sending a smirk her way.

“Well, don’t count your chickens yet,” she says.  “If you want a duel, you’ll get one.”

“Perfect!” Hirari laughs, clapping her hands.  “I’ve already gotten my two Pendulum cards. How about you?”

“I’m set.”

“Then let’s get started~”

Yuzu realizes, suddenly, that she doesn’t know where Yuya went.  She opens her mouth to say hold on, but Hirari is already turning on her duel disk, and Yuzu’s disk is activating in response.

“Let’s have a dazzling duel!” Hirari giggles.

Yuzu grits her teeth.  Where did Yuya go?? Hopefully he didn’t go far...

“Hirari’s turn first!” Hirari says, her voice changing into something even more cutesy.  Clearly, she’s entering her stage persona. “Hirari special summons Primitive Butterfly, since Hirari has no monsters!”

A huge butterfly with three sets of green wings appears beside Hirari.

“And then I summon Naturia Butterfly from my hand!”

A cuter looking butterfly with big expressive eyes appears next.  Hirari puts her hands to her cheeks, giggling.

“Naturia Butterfly is a tuner monster!” she says.  “But first, I use Primitive Butterfly’s effect to increase all of my insect monsters levels by one!”

Primitive Butterfly shakes its wings, and a fine golden powder spreads over the two monsters.

“I tune Primitive Butterfly with Naturia Butterfly!  Spread your glorious rare wings and join the swarm! Synchro Summon!  Verdes Queen Blue Butterfly!”

A massive butterfly, almost the size of the plateaus around them, descends in a gust of heavy wind.  Its wings are huge and scaley, a dazzling neon blue, and it has two huge eyes that have a red glow deep within their orbs.

“I play my continuous spell card Butterfly Powder!” Hirari giggles.  “And then I activate Verdes Queen’s effect! Once per turn, I can deal you five hundred points of damage for every Butterfly card in my graveyard!”

Yuzu swears.  On the first turn???

“Plus, with the effect of Butterfly Powder, you’ll take an extra one hundred points of damage for every Butterfly in my graveyard!  That’s a total of twelve hundred!”

Yuzu bolts.  She has to find an Action Card!

“Shimmering Dust!” Hirari calls, and the butterfly begins to shake its wings.

A thick, choking cloud of dust falls over Yuzu, and she gasps, choking.  She’s too slow for an Action Card! No, wait, there!! There’s one!

She dives for it — and a shadow streaks past her, slamming her hand into the ground.  She screams.

It’s not Hirari, or her monster.  The boy that stands over her is wearing the same uniform as Kachidoki Isao.  He smirks at her.

“Hey,” he says.  “Where’s your boyfriend?  I have a score I wanna settle.”

Yuzu feels something very like rage coil up in her chest.  She snatches her hand back from under his foot and leaps to her feet.  He’s blocked her from the Action Card, and as her life points go down from Hirari’s attack, he plucks it from the ground.

“Let me join in,” he says.  “My turn.”

Yuzu’s eyes flash to her Duel Disk.  How did she not notice?? He had joined the duel at the exact same time as Hirari!

She turns and bolts again.  If she’s up against two people, she needs to find Action Cards!

“Aw, Nagi-kun, you’re stealing my show,” Hirari whines.

“Shut up, this was your plan,” the boy, Nagi says.  “I won’t whine when you help me take out Sakaki Yuya.”

Yuzu’s heart swells with panic.  They planned this! They must have been watching, waiting for her and Yuya to get separated — both of them have their own grudges against the two of them for the duels earlier.  If Yuzu gets defeated here, they’ll go after Yuya! And Yuya will get double-teamed, with this violent boy from Ryopanzaku joined in!

“I activate Polymerization from my hand!” Nagi shouts.  “I fuse Senko the Skybolt and Todoroki the Earthbolt from my hand to summon Raijin the Breakbolt Star!”

His monster is the same beefy, armored warrior type of creature that Kachidoki used.  But it doesn’t have the ability to attack yet. 

“I’ll play my Action Spell from my hand!  Flame Ball!”

That was the Action Spell she’d tried to get!  A glowing ball of fire swells over Nagi’s head.

“You’ll take two hundred points of damage!”

“And with Butterfly Powder, every time you take damage, you take an extra one hundred for every Butterfly in my graveyard!” Hirari laughs.

Yuzu screams as the fireball exploded around her.  She hasn’t even taken a turn, and she’s down sixteen hundred life points!

“It’s my turn!” she shouts.

She spreads the cards in her hand out, flicking through her options.

Her stomach clenches up when she notices the Laurel Bard staring back up at her.  For some reason, that card feels colder than the others. She looks away from it.

“I set the Pendulum scale with scale one Adagio and scale two Tempo!”

Her monsters rise up into their pillars, sending a cool glow that calms her.  That’s right — as long as she fights with her monsters, even if the odds are against her, she can still win!

“I increase Tempo’s scale to ten by her effect!  From my hand, I Pendulum Summon Bloom Bard and Aria!”

The duo appear before her, humming a little tune under their breaths.  Yuzu’s heart starts to slow down now that they’re on the field with her.  She doesn’t feel quite so alone.

“I activate Adagio’s effect!  Once per turn, I can make one monster on the field lose five hundred attack points!  And I choose to lower Raijin the Breakbolt Star’s attack!”

Adagio strums out a low, leisurely chord on her mandolin, and the sound ripples over the field.  Raijin’s stance falters, and it drops to one knee.

“Now it has less attack than Bloom Bard!  Bloom Bard, attack with Staccato Riposte!”

Bloom Bard draws her sword and bolts forward.  Raijin and Bloom Bard clash for a moment, but then Bloom Bard’s sword shatters Raijin’s polearm.  The monster flickers and vanishes, and Nagi swears.

“Aria!  Attack Nagi directly!”

Aria clasps her hands together, closes her eyes, and lets out a beautiful tune.  The sound wave blasts over Nagi, and he winces at his lowered life points.

“That’s all for my turn,” Yuzu calls, and then she bolts again.  Hirari will go next, and she’ll likely try to lower Yuzu’s life points again with that Queen Butterfly effect.  She has to find a way to deal with that quickly!

“Hirari’s dazzling turn!” Hirari giggles.  “First, Hirari summons Blazewing Butterfly!”

A butterfly with wings made of fire explodes out of the lava, making an awful chittering sound.

“Then Hirari activates Verdes Queen’s effect!  You’ll take a total of twelve hundred points of damage with Butterfly Powder!”

Yuzu sees an Action Card!  She dives for it.

Nagi slams into her, throwing her with a cry into the nearest rock wall.  She hits it and then rolls, stumbling off another drop off. It takes everything she has to skid herself to a stop on her hands and knees before she tumbles right into a river of lava.

A cloud of poisonous butterfly powder clouds around her, taking her life points down to twelve hundred.

“Verdes Queen Blue Butterfly will attack Aria!” Hirari shouts.

“Since Aria was special summoned, she won’t be destroyed by battle!” Yuzu shouts.

“But you’ll still take the damage!  Verdes Queen, Dust Gale!”

The butterfly shrieks, and a cutting wind stirs up from its flapping wings.  Yuzu cries out. The wind almost knocks her into the lava, but then Bloom Bard is there, snatching her back and shoving her to her feet.

“Why don’t you play that scary monster you had before, when you dueled Mikiyo-chan?” Hirari giggles.

A passes through Yuzu.  She remembers with a vivid rush that awful, unrepentant feeling that had come over her as she left the field.  It makes her stomach twist, makes her feel like she’s going to throw up. She...she doesn’t know who she was back then.  She was someone else, someone...cold. And despite the heat, she feels cold now. She feels...alone. She doesn’t feel like herself.

“You’re going to lose if you don’t,” Hirari giggles.  “I activate my Quick Play spell card, Butterfly Effect!  When a ‘Butterfly’ monster I control fails to destroy a monster by battle, I can destroy all non- ‘Butterfly’ monsters on the field, and their controllers take one hundred damage for each one!”

Yuzu’s blood runs cold.  Aria’s effect will protect her Melodious from being targeted by effects, but not from area of effect destruction!!  She swears — Action Card! Where is it??

There!  Up on the ridge above her!  Yuzu spins and explodes upward, fingers reaching desperately for the slip of paper.

“I won’t let you!” Nagi shouts, and she can’t dodge him in midair, he’s striking right for her!

Just as a massive gust of wind rips through the field, Yuzu feels hands grab her by the waist.  Bloom Bard heaves her upwards, the last few inches she needs to grab the Action card, dodging past Nagi just in time.  Her fingers close around it, just as Bloom Bard is flung backwards, shattering in the wind just before she hits the lava.  Her glowing pendulum card pillars shatter and fade, and Aria lets out one cry before she, too, disappears. Yuzu’s life points drop to a measly four hundred in the cloud of powder that chokes around her.

Yuzu twists in midair, kicks her feet against the wall, and uses it to push off.  The butterfly strikes the wall where she was before, and she flips once in a perfect front flip before landing neatly back on the ground, inches from the lava pit.

“And now you’re wide open!  Blazewing Butterfly, attack directly!”

“Action spell!” Yuzu screams desperately.  “Evasion!”

She slams herself into the wall dodging the crackling wings of the butterfly.  The heat of the lava river beside her is so hot!

“Not too bad, darling,” Hirari says. 

Yuzu’s heart screams in her chest.  There’s sweat running down her forehead, her hair hanging limp and sweaty even in the dry heat.  Her hands...her hands are shaking. It’s too hot.

She could chain the destruction of her monsters to summon Laurel Bard.  As long as she summons her during the turn where her monsters were destroyed, she can bring her out.  But...but if she does....

“Action Magic!  Flame Ball!” Nagi shouts.

No!  That plus Butterfly Powder will wipe her out!

The flame ball swirls to life above her.  Yuzu bolts. Action Card! She has to find an Action Card that will save her!

“Curtain’s falling, darling!” Hirari laughs.

There aren’t any Action Cards!!  Yuzu is going to — 

The ball of fire flashes down towards her.  She feels her heart breaking against her ribs.

And then, a strange, round faced creature pops into life in front of her.  It laughs, opening its mouth wide like a puppet, and swallows the fire ball.  Yuzu skids to a stop, eyes widening. Where did that...?

“I hope you don’t mind the intrusion!” comes a cheery voice from overhead.  “But ganging up on such a performer is such a disservice to the craft!”

Yuzu, Nagi, and Hirari all look up to the ridge.  Who is that?

Yuzu remembers the boy with the curly orange hair, but only vaguely from when they were standing in the top sixteen group.  She doesn’t remember his name, or if she’s seen any of his matches.

He winks at her.

“Mind if I join you?” he says.


	37. Y U Y A / Y U Z U

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Nettle Veil ](https://66.media.tumblr.com/0d8a51c2de6dcfaea10bbb8dcec96fd1/tumblr_pgbebsgTQL1wgflrqo1_540.png)

_Glitches are occurring once again.  About 82% of the time, the program of Sphinx Teleia appears to produce its own body heat, and reacts to some outside stimulus.  The other 18% of the time, the program remains inert. Excessive prompting to produce a new response from the program in these cases results in a brief spurt of what can only be termed aggressive behavior._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 7, Entry 24.



* * *

 

“Hold on!  What are you talking about?  Hey!”

Yuya wasn’t sure what to think when the ninja told him that he needed to go with him, but it looks like he doesn’t have much choice in the matter.  He’s a little surprised just how easily the ninja scoops him up, as though he weighs nothing at all, skidding down to the other side of the plateau with him.

“Hey!  What the heck!” Yuya cries, struggling in the ninja’s grip.

For his part, the ninja is quite patient with Yuya, not reacting much to his flailing arms, even when he catches him in the temple with his elbow.

“Listen — hey!  What do you mean, I have to come with you?  If you want a duel, just say so!! My friend is back there!  I can’t just disappear on her!”

The ninja finally relents, releasing Yuya once they’ve reached the bottom of the plateau.  Yuya leaps back, heart hammering in his chest. What the heck??

The ninja gives him a moment to catch his breath.

“I’m sorry, Sakaki-dono.  We don’t have much time for explanations.  But I am not here to duel you. This battle royale is a smokescreen for a greater threat.  I work for Akaba Reiji-dono, and he believes that you may be in danger.”

This is not at all what Yuya expects to hear.  His mouth drops open. For a moment, he simply fumbles for his words, staring at the ninja.  The ninja looks a bit nervous now, his eyes flickering around, tapping his feet slightly, as though anxious to be moving again.

“We should not dally, Sakaki-dono.  The enemy could be upon us at any moment.”

“I don’t understand a word you’re saying!” Yuya says.  “What do you mean, a smokescreen? I’m in danger? If I’m in danger, then —”

He whitens.  Yuzu’s still back there!!

“I can’t leave Yuzu!” he says.  “If there’s danger, then she’ll be in the way of it too!”

The ninja’s eyes tighten just a bit, and his arms fold across his chest.

“You must have faith in your friend, Sakaki-dono.  But my orders are to see you escorted safely back to LDS.”

Yuya draws back just a bit, feeling suddenly panicky.  It’s so _hot_.  The air wavers with heat.  He can’t even imagine how hot the ninja must be, in all of those tight, layered clothes.  

He tries to think past the heat and the surprise.  Yuzu and he both wanted to go to LDS, he thinks. Their plan was to head in that direction so that they could make their way over and try to get Reiji to talk to them.  And here this ninja is saying he’s going to take Yuya right to him. He might be able to get his answers.

But he can’t just leave Yuzu out here if there’s danger!

“Sakaki-dono,” the ninja says.  “There isn’t the time.”

He really does sound nervous.  Yuya doesn’t think this is a trap, and at any rate, it’s a pretty weird trap.  No one else would have known that he wanted to see Reiji, so it’s not like this is a means to lure him away from Yuzu for a duel.  If the ninja wanted to duel him, he would have probably done so by now.

His stomach twists with unease.  But...why is _he_ a target?

“Okay,” he says.  “I’ll come along.”

The ninja sighs with what sounds like a faint relief.

“This way,” he says.  “We must not linger.”

Yuya hurries to try and keep up with the ninja’s much faster pace.

“Hang on,” he says, and the ninja looks back at him with a mixture of reluctance, still moving at a quick clip.  “I just — what’s your name, anyway? I don’t think I caught it.”

The ninja blinks with surprise.  Then he turns his face back towards his direction of choice, and for a moment, doesn’t answer.  His scarf moves with his lips when he speaks.

“You may call me Tsukikage,” he said.

Yuya nods.

“Okay, Tsukikage,” he says.  “Lead the way.”

He turns on his Duel Disk, and starts to tap out a message to Yuzu.

* * *

The boy’s entrance has thrown Yuzu wholly off guard.  For a moment, she just stares, her mouth hanging open.  The boy winks at her again.

And then his Duel Disk sparks.

_“Intrusion Penalty.  Two thousand life points.”_

Electricity crackles out of the boy’s disk, making him flail comically for a moment.  He trips and slides face first down the rock hill, coming to a stop near Yuzu’s feet. She hesitates, just staring at him.  Well...that was an entrance.

Hirari starts laughing.

“Oh my god!” she shrieks with laughter.  “What an entrance!!”

The boy coughs as he sits back up, a light, cheery blush covering his fair cheeks.

“My goodness,” he says.  “They didn’t tell us about that!”

He rubs the back of his neck, grinning at Yuzu.  Yuzu doesn’t even know what to say. Just a minute ago, she felt like she was falling apart.  But then this boy shows up, and she’s been startled so much that’s she’s forgotten the sick feeling in her stomach.

“You doing all right?” he asks cheerily as he pops to his feet.  “Sorry for popping in without asking, but I didn’t think it was right to let a lovely lady lose to such poor sportsmanship!”

Yuzu finally startles out of her shock.

“I — thank you,” she says.  “And you are?”

He smiles, and she swears she sees an actual sparkle appear when he winks yet again.  He turns towards their opponents on the other side of the lava river.

“I,” he says, with a sparkling flourish as he draws his next card, “am Dennis Macfield!  LDS Broadway student, at your service, Miss Hiragi!”

“You showing up won’t make much of a difference,” Hirari says with a giggle.  “Because I’ve found another Action Card! Flame Ball!”

Yuzu swears.  The ball of fire swirls to life above them again, and she tenses up.

“Not so fast!  I special summon Performage Flame Eater in attack position to negate the damage!” Dennis says, waggling a finger.

A tiny black ball with jagged teeth, like a goofy Pac-Man, leaps out of Dennis’s hand and onto the field.  It opens its mouth comically wide, swallowing the flames before they can even edge towards Yuzu.

“You’ll have to do better than that!” Nagi shouts, diving for another Action Card.  “I activate another Flame Ball!”

Yuzu spins, looking desperately for an Action Card.  She has to find something or she’s going to —

“I special summon another Flame Eater!” Dennis shouts.

A second round Flame Eater leaps onto the field, swan-diving over the lava to eat the flame once again.  Yuzu’s heart hammers in her chest, her mouth hanging open with shock at the abruptness of it all.

“You’re all being very rude, you know,” Dennis says.  “You won’t even let me take my turn! Interrupting me.”

He shakes his head with a soft tutting sound.  But then he smiles.

“But,” he says, spreading his arms out wide.  “I should also thank you! Because now all the pieces are in place to bring out the star of the show!”

He lifts his hand over his head and snaps his fingers.

“I now have two level four monsters!  And I will now overlay them!”

Yuzu’s heart quickens as she spins to face Dennis with a new burst of interest.  He’s an XYZ duelist!

“Come forth, my star!” Dennis calls.  Yuzu’s eyes bulge with shock as he runs headlong towards the lava river, while stars swirl over his head. She cries out, leaping for him, but he’s already bounded up and leap straight over the lava, arms held out.  “Performage Trapeze Magician!”

Before he can tumble into the lava, a pair of hands grasp his.  He’s swung up into the air, spiraling around a laughing masked magician, who swings him up and around and onto its shoulders, as it grips onto a disembodied trapeze pole that swings it through the air despite having no strings.

“Trapeze Magician’s effect will negate all effect damage lower than its attack,” Dennis says, still spinning around his now sparkling stage with Trapeze Magician’s help.  “So you can rest easy, my dear!”

He winks at Yuzu, and Yuzu feels a slight blush creep over her cheeks in spite of herself.  But a smile grows over her lips next. With one move, Dennis has protected her from the dangers of all the major effect damage on the field!  Butterfly Powder is useless now!

She looks back to her hand, and a faint fear flickers over her as she remembers what’s in it.  Laurel Bard looks up at her. She remembers the cold, harsh feeling that encased her during the duel with Mikiyo.  The hopelessness that had dragged at her during this duel, the feeling of being about to lose. It...it terrifies her, for some reason.

Dennis swings past her, landing lightly on his feet beside her.

“Hey,” he says, with a light smile.  “What’s with that face? I thought you were a performer!”

Yuzu blinks, looking up at him with surprise.  He winks — he seems to do that a lot.

“I’ve been such a fan of Entertainment Dueling,” he says.  “I was so hoping to see it in action along with you!”

He sweeps her a bow, as Trapeze Magician continues to swing and spread glitter over the field.

“So how about a smile?” he says. “I thought your style was always better with one!”

Yuzu’s lips part.

“You know about Entertainment Dueling?” she says.

“Of course!  You come from the great tradition of Sakaki Yusho!” Dennis said with delight, spreading his arms out wide dramatically.  “I’ve been enamored since the first day I saw it! The power of dueling along with your monsters, in such a show of joy and trust, bringing smiles to the whole audience!”

His words are stirring something in her.  She clutches her cards, thinking once again of the fear that Laurel Bard put in her.  But...but isn’t that unfair? Laurel Bard hadn’t done anything wrong — Yuzu was the duelist, here.  She’s the one who directs the battle. Laurel Bard is not the problem.

No...the problem is her.  She’s forgotten the essence of You Show dueling — trusting your monsters.

Yuzu inhales sharply, and then lets it out.

“All right,” she says.  “Well watch closely, Dennis Macfield, because you’re about to see true Entertainment Dueling in action!”

She points one finger towards the sky in a pose, while Dennis applauds.

“It’s my turn!” she calls.  “First, with the already set scales, I’ll first increase Tempo’s scale to ten!”

Tempo strikes her metronome, and as it begins to swing, her scale increases.

“Then, from my hand, I activate this!  Operetto Barrier!” she shouts. “I can target one monster on the field, and make that monster a “Melodious”!  During this turn, none of my Melodious monsters can be destroyed by effects!”

A shining veil, humming with a faint melody, cascaded over the stage, making Trapeze Magician look like it was glowing.

“I target Trapeze Magician with this effect, so it’s now a Melodious monster,” Yuzu says.  “And now...let’s welcome my prima donnas to the stage!”

She snaps one finger over her head, and her Pendulum pillars begin to glow.

“With the already set scale, first, I bring back Bloom Bard the Melodious Knight from the Extra Deck!” Yuzu shouts.  “And with her, please welcome...Laurel Bard, the Melodious Knight!”

The two beautiful knights appear in a tornado of flowers like inverse twins, standing at attention, hands resting on the pommels of their blades.

“Laurel Bard’s effect activates!  When she’s special summoned, I destroy all cards on the field except her!  But with Operetto Barrier in effect, my Melodious cards will be protected!”

Hirai lets out a shocked cry, and Nagi swears. Yuzu points with a flourish.

“Laurel Bard!  Requiem of Victory!”

Laurel Bard draws her blade.  She rises it point first towards the sky, and a storm of white petals comes to its tip.  They explode outwards in a blizzard, but the glowing veil of the Operetto buffets them back from Yuzu’s side of the field, shielding Bloom Bard and Trapeze Magician.  Hirari lets out a cry, as her butterflies shatter into dust, and Nagi throws his hands in front of his face. Yuzu’s Pendulums are destroyed as well since they’re not monsters, but that’s all right.  They’re still here, in spirit to protect them, and Yuzu won’t waste their sacrifice!

“You still won’t be able to take us both out this turn!” Hirari shrieks, sounding very uncute all of a sudden.  “Your monsters aren’t strong enough; you can only take out one of us!”

“And with that, I’ll activate Trapeze Magician’s other effect!” Dennis calls, running and leaping to catch Trapeze Magician’s hands again.  “Once per turn, I can detach one XYZ unit from it to give another monster a second attack! And with two units, that means I can activate it twice!”

The two stars swirling around Trapeze Magician soar off, both of them bursting before Laurel Bard and Bloom Bard, sprinkling them with a dust that makes them glow softly.  Yuzu lights up, shooting Dennis a thumbs up as he swings past her. He returns the gesture with a peace sign.

“And that will be enough,” she calls, holding one hand out.  “Laurel Bard! Bloom Bard! Floral Duet!”

The two knights raise their rapiers, striking them against each other.  A massive blizzard of red and white petals fills the air. The wind buffets Yuzu, sending her hair in a frenzy about her face.  The blizzard sprays out, cutting through their two opponents, and sending them both flying back with a cry. Yuzu’s Duel Disk registers their life points hitting zero.  The Duel Disk plays the victory sound, indicating that the impromptu tag duel has ended in hers and Dennis’s favor.

The knights linger before her for a moment, just before the holograms dissipate.  She’s not quite sure she didn’t imagine it, but she almost imagines she sees both of them smile at her, their eyes shadowed by their wide brimmed hats.

Dennis swings back down to the ground beside her.  When he puts his hand out, she misreads it in her pumped up mood, slapping it like a high five instead of a hand shake.  Luckily, he seems to find this incredibly amusing, laughing as he shakes his hand. Yuzu blushes — she didn’t mean to high five him that hard.

“That was beautiful,” Dennis says.  “Thank you so much for letting me join in!”

“I couldn’t have won that duel without you,” she says.  “So thank _you_ for showing up when you did.”

Her heart is still racing with adrenaline, and she can’t hardly think for the high of the duel.

It takes her a half breath to remember what’s missing.

“Oh, no,” she gasps, the high fading. “Yuya!  Where did Yuya go?”

“Yuya?” Dennis asks.  “You don’t mean Sakaki Yuya, do you?  The son of Sakaki Yusho?”

“That’s him,” Yuzu says distractedly, spinning around to try and catch a glimpse of him.  “Yuya? Yuya! Where’d you go?”

You’d think he would have shown up at the sounds of the duel.  He couldn’t have gone far, right?? She spins in another circle, looking for some sign of him. She inhales to shout his name again.

And then she sees something move behind a plateau.  She catches the flicker of motion, and sees a face peek out from behind one of the rocks.  Oh! Yuya!

“Yuya!” she calls, waving and running towards him.

She’s not prepared to see his face whiten, and for him to turn and bolt.  Yuzu almost stops with surprise, but then she starts running again.

“Hey!” she shouts.  “Yuya! Wait!”


	38. Y U Y A / R U R I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [XYZ Requiem](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/179095941309/xyz-requiem-counter-trap-target-one-winged-beast)

 

_Behavior Log:_

_XX-XX: Introduced Sphinx Teleia to small puddle of water in an otherwise empty, controlled room.  Sphinx Teleia proceeded to approach puddle without prompting and attempt to drink from it._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 9, Entry 13.



* * *

Yuya chokes when Tsukikage suddenly throws his arm out, clotheslining Yuya across the chest and shoving him back behind a plateau.  Yuya opens his mouth to ask him why they’ve stopped, but his words shrivel when he sees the flash of anxiety in the ninja’s eyes. Instead, he just goes quiet, and tries to very carefully peek around Tsukikage’s shoulder.

Just around the cliff, there are a trio of kids maybe a little older than Yuya, high school age maybe, in short blue jackets and strange silver masks.  They seem to be talking to each other, but they’re too far away to hear. One of them looks down at their strange, shield shaped Duel Disk, and another points off in another direction.  Tsukikage swears softly.

“What?” Yuya whispers.  “Is that who we’re hiding from?”

“Obelisk Force,” Tsukikage confirms.  “We can’t be sure if you’re the target for certain.  But certainly you could easily be mistaken for it.”

“What does that mean?”

“No time.  We’ll have to cut around another direction.”

“Why don’t we just duel them?”

“Inadvisable.  They are a highly trained team built to work with each other.  You and I are not properly trained as tag partners, and your safety is more important.”

Yuya is so confused.  Who _are_ these people?  Are they from another school?  Why is Tsukikage being so cautious?  Are they really in danger? This is just a card game tournament, isn’t it?

 _Yuzu said Ruri came from a world that was invaded,_ Yuya thought with a twist in his stomach. _Are these the guys who did it?_

Tsukikage begins to back them away down the side of the plateau.  Yuya hears a loud shout then, and as he takes one more peek around the plateau, he sees a line of older LDS students on the bridge, catching the three “Obelisk Force” kids’ attention.  Tsukikage lets out a short sigh of relief.

“Who are they?” Yuya whispers.

“LDS Seniors Division.  They’ll cover our escape,” Tsukikage says.  “Listen now, Sakaki-dono. Our planned route is to take us around in a circle back to LDS.  We will cut straight across to the Tundra field, make distance, and come back around through the Ancient Ruins field.  Stay ahead of me, and should something stop me from going with you, continue running. Do not stop for me.”

Yuya’s starting to freak out now.  He’s talking like they’re in some kind of warzone, like Tsukikage could actually die.

“My brother, Hikage, should also be in this area.  If you run across him without me, tell him to take you straight to LDS.  He will understand.”

“Wait,” Yuya whispers.  “Hey, why are you talking like you could die??  You really have to tell me what’s going on!”

Tsukikage doesn’t pause to explain, though, because he’s already shooing Yuya ahead of him, making him run towards the Ice field.

Yuya doesn’t have much of a choice here, does he?  He swallows the last of his anxieties, and hopes that Yuzu got his message.  Then he starts running where Tsukikage tells him to.

* * *

Ruri pushes out of the hospital wing and hurries down the hallway.  It took them so long to finally clear her!! She’d only had a headache, nothing more!

Her hands shake — the minute she’d been done, she’d checked her Duel Disk, and seen the message from her brother.   _Obelisk Force in city.  Stay in LDS._

Like hell!  If Obelisk Force is here, she needs to fight!!  This city could become like her own if she doesn’t!  She won’t let another city succumb to the despair she felt in Heartland!

The lobby is empty when she rushes out of LDS, and when she bursts outside, she’s suddenly hit with a wave of intense heat, so hot that she almost chokes on it.  What on...

Her eyes widen.  What on earth has happened here?  The world outside looks like a nightmare — heat rises in horrible waves off of bubbling pits of lava, as jutting stalagmites of dark rock thrust from the earth like spikes.  How is this even possible? Did Academia do so much damage already?

Her Duel Disk buzzes, and she quickly answers it, thinking it might be Shun.  Reiji’s face appears instead, looking tired.

“I heard from the doctors that you let yourself out in a hurry,” he says.

“I’m not going to sit down and let Academia do what it wants,” she snaps.

He shakes his head.

“I had no intention of asking that of you.  Your help would in fact be appreciated. Currently, I have one of my agents trying to escort Sakaki Yuya back to LDS, but he’s run into a roadblock and must take a detour.  If you could meet them and assist them in making it safely back, I would appreciate it.”

Ruri wants to ask about her brother, about where Reiji has sent him and what he’s doing at the moment, if he’s safe — but she knows now is not the time.  Now is the time to focus on the mission, to erase all thoughts of worry and fear, and to make sure that at least her part comes to fruition. And...Sakaki Yuya.  The boy who looks like Yuto. So Reiji _does_ believe he’s in danger.  She nodes, tightening her fists.

“Send me his current coordinates and I’m on my way,” Ruri says.

She couldn’t save Yuto back then.  Maybe she can at least atone for that by rescuing one person.

* * *

After the heat of the lava field, the tundra field is _awful_.  Yuya’s never liked cold to begin with, but after sweating up a storm, now the cold is that much worse against his chilled skin.  He reluctantly pulls his jacket on over his arms the correct way to avoid getting a chill. This Solid Vision is really something, though!

He glances back over his shoulder to see where Tsukikage wants them to go next.  Tsukikage glances around, at the wide, barren wasteland of ice, and then nods forward.

“We’ll go down this ridge and then cut around,” he says.  “Careful.”

“Hey, don’t underestimate me.  I’m a You Show student after all — this kind of thing is my jam.”

Yuya turns back down to the ridge and considers it for a moment.  It’s definitely slippery. So, he might as well just slide. He jumped forward, hits the ice with both feet, carefully adjusts his weight, and then he’s skidding down like he’s on an invisible skateboard.

Despite the tenseness of this whole situation, this is really fun!!  Yuya lets out a little whoop as the world blurs around him, skidding faster and faster towards the dune of snow below him.

He lands with a flump face first into the snow.  It’s thick enough to perfectly cushion his fall, and he can’t help but laugh a bit when he pushes himself out of it.

_“Intrusion Penalty.  Two thousand life points.”_

His Duel Disk sparks and sends a thin jolt of electricity up his arm.  Huh?? But he didn’t join any duels!!

“Yuya??  Where did you come from?”

Yuya pushes up out of the snow, and is surprised to see Gongenzaka looming over him.  Gongenzaka reaches for him and plucks him out of the drift with one hand, setting him on top of it and then busily dusting the snow off his front.

“Gongenzaka?  What happened?  Did I...?”

“Oh?  Is this a tag duel now?  I didn’t know that could happen.”

Yuya glances over with surprise to see that Gongenzaka has _two_ opponents.  Both of them are foreign, and the one who spoke definitely has an accent.  She’s a stout looking girl, or maybe that’s just her heavy clothes, her braids on her shoulders in both ginger and white.  A boy in much less warm looking clothes with brown skin and fluffy black hair looks super excited, jumping up and down at Yuya’s appearance.

Yuya hears the skid of Tsukikage coming back down behind him, and the ninja lets off a tiny swear.  Yuya turns around to grimace apologetically at him, but is surprised to see Tsukikage simply turn on his Duel Disk.  He also takes the intrusion penalty, and the mode on Yuya’s disk switches to Battle Royale.

“We don’t really have the time for this,” Tsukikage says quietly.  “But the system will take issue with us moving outside of an entered duel, and I feel that these opponents will likely pursue if we’re still considered participants.”

Yuya and Gongenzaka exchange a glance, and Gongenzaka looks massively confused, his eyebrows almost in his hairline.

“Yuya, what’s happening?” he asks.

“Beats me,” Yuya says with a sigh.  “But hey — looks like we can help each other out here for a minute!  Let’s duel!”


	39. Y U Z U / D E N N I S

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Blizzard Wand](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/179326584734/blizzard-wand-equip-spell-equip-only-to-a)

_Behavior Log:_

_XX-XX: Introduced Sphinx Teleia to maze environment.  Subject paced along one hallway and would not move forward.  Suspected glitch in the AI programming was addressed. Subject still continued to pace without attempting to solve the maze.  When further prompted, it instead began to physically attack the walls, and the experiment had to be terminated._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 9, Entry 18.



* * *

Why is Yuya running away from her?  Yuzu gasps for breath in the hot, arid air that scrapes against her throat, trying to keep sight of him — but he’s moving insanely fast, constantly darting behind things so that she almost loses sight of him.  She vaguely thinks that she should have felt bad about leaving Dennis behind without even saying anything to him, but right now, she’s focused on Yuya.

“Yuya!” she shouts again.

It occurs to her somewhere at the back of her mind that maybe it’s _not_ Yuya.  But it looked _just_ like him!  Just...like...him...

Who is she chasing?

Yuzu stumbles to a stop around another ridge, slumping with her hands on her knees to catch her breath.  She hears a scrabbling sound and a swear and then a thump, and looks up through her sweaty bangs.

The boy who looks just like Yuya seems to have fallen to the ground — from the way the small rocks are tumbling down the cliff face in front of him, it seems like he was trying to climb it, but lost his grip and fell back to his butt.  He’s gasping, his entire body trembling. When she inhales, he flinches, head swiveling back around over his shoulder. He scrambles back to his feet and spins around, plastering himself back to the wall, and lifting his Duel Disk. It seems that Yuzu has inadvertently chased him into a dead end, surrounded on three sides by cliff face.

It’s definitely not Yuya, Yuzu sees now.  This boy has the same face, but his hair is dark purple and mussed, hanging in shaggy, tangled knots around his face.  His eyes are magenta, and wide with a panic and anger that Yuzu has never seen on Yuya’s face before. He actually snarls at her, his entire frail body trembling, the red jacket on his back seeming to hang off his bony edges.

“I’ll die first,” the boy hisses before Yuzu can say anything.  “Do you hear me, bitch? Get any closer and I’ll card myself. Good luck explaining that one to the Professor!”

 _Okay wow.  There’s a lot to unpack there,_ she thinks.

She just raises both her hands up to show him that she’s not going to attack him.  Is this...Yuto? The boy that Ruri is looking for? Did he escape from Academia?

“I’m not going to hurt you,” she says.  “I’m sorry, really, I mistook you for someone else.”

“That’s likely,” the boy says, his voice actually cracking with something of a wild laugh.

“I promise!  I’m sorry, really, I’ve frightened you,” Yuzu says.  She backs up a bit, giving him more space. “You look just like my friend, Yuya.”

The boy’s wild laughter stops, and his eyes suddenly narrow as his face immediately goes darkly considering.  She freezes up — for a moment, she feels like _she’s_ the one cornered.  The boy has a strange aura, the hint of a predator behind the panic of the prey — as though if the situation had been only slightly different, she might have been the one fleeing from him.

His eyes flicker up and down and across her, brows furrowing, lips curling back from his teeth in another almost animalistic snarl.

“Are you lying to me?” he asks.

What a weird question.  She would say no even if she _was_ lying to him.  How can he trust her like that?  But she tries to keep her voice soothing anyway.

“No,” she said.  “I’m not.”

She gives him another step back of breathing space.

“Are you Yuto?” she asks, unable to hold it back anymore.  “Are you Ruri’s friend? She’s been looking for you everywhere.”

The boy’s lips part.  He stares at her. Then his lips curl again, and he spits on the ground.

“My name is _Yuuri_ ,” he says.  “God. I can’t believe I mistook you for her.  You’re unbearably stupid.”

“Hey!” Yuzu said, frowning.  “It’s not my fault that I don’t know what’s going on!”

Yuuri rolls his eyes, but it seems that once his panic is gone, he’s all snark.

“Well, then don’t give strangers _heart attacks_ ,” he says.  “God. Do you chase everyone who runs away from you like that?  Is that how you treat this ‘Yuya’ of yours?”

“Look, everything is a bit _much_ right now, and I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing!” Yuzu says.  Now she’s getting irritated. She tugs at her collar a few times — it’s so _hot_.  She wants to get out of this area.  “Okay, listen. Why are you so freaked out?  Can I do anything to help?”

He looks her up and down again, and then sniffs.  Despite his bedraggled appearance and his former panic, he has a regal sort of aura about him, and Yuzu suddenly feels like she’s being appraised — even though he looks _way_ worse for the wear than she does.

“I doubt it,” he says, wrinkling his nose.  “You don’t look like you could duel a fly, let alone the Obelisk Force.”

Yuzu steps forward abruptly — what’s that?  A new piece of information? But she backs up again when she sees the panic flare in his eyes again.  He’s really jumpy...she wonders why.

“Don’t judge me so fast,” she says, frowning at him.  “I’m a pretty good duelist, you know. I mean — we’re actually in the middle of a tournament right now, and I’m in the top sixteen.”

Yuuri blinks at her.  He looks around at the field then.  He sticks his tongue out slightly as though in thought.

“So _that’s_ what’s been done with the place,” he says.

“Now, who are the Obelisk Force?  And...if you’re not Yuto, are you...what dimension _are_ you from?”

He snaps his eyes to her again, frowning at her suspiciously.

“You say you don’t know the Obelisk Force, but you _do_ know about the dimensions?  What kind of Standard denizen are you?”

“It has been a really weird couple of days.”

“Hm.”

He looks her up and down again, this time in what seems to be a new light.  He sticks his tongue out slightly again, and Yuzu is reminded of a cat. Then he shakes his head.

“No, no, no,” he mumbles, as though she can’t hear him.  “Looks too much like her. We can’t trust her, can we?”

Ooookay.  Yuzu backs up again, but now it’s for herself.  He’s talking to himself. His eyes are fixed on her now, and she feels the sweat pooling at the base of her back.

“Can’t trust anyone,” Yuuri mumbles.  “Especially not ones who look like her.  Must be important to _him_ somehow, all of them.  No, you’re right. You’re right.  We need to go.”

“Yuuri-san?” Yuzu says.

He moves faster than she does.  His Duel Disk snaps on, and he slams a card onto it.  Yuzu throws her hands up in front of her face at the blinding glare from the spell card.  She hears Yuuri’s feet scrabbling, feels the flick of his jacket as he bolts past her, and when her eyes clear, Yuuri is gone.

She’s staring instead at a blank wall, and when she turns around, there’s no sign of him.  Her heart pounds in her chest. What was _that_ about?  Who was that boy?  What had he been talking about?  Who were the Obelisk Force?

And...and if he wasn’t Yuya, then where did Yuya go?

She looks down at her Duel Disk — oh!  When did she get this message??

_Yuzu, sorry for disappearing!  A ninja appeared and told me I had to go with him because Akaba thinks I’m in danger???  We’re going to LDS though, so you can meet us there if you want! We’ll get the answers out of Akaba, don’t worry!_

And then there’s a second message, one that has a lot more spelling errors:

_yuzu dnt go str8 to LDA bad stuf in way going thrugh other filds 2 get there b carefu oblsk forxe_

Yuzu’s heart leaps into her throat.  That last bit — it has to be Obelisk Force!  And what does that middle bit mean? That they’re going through...going through other...fields!  They’re going through other fields in the battle royale to work their way around to LDS!

Yuzu bolts.  Which way is best? She has to find Yuya!  Which way would they have gone?

If the Obelisk Force is here for Yuuri...

Then what will they do if they see Yuya??

* * *

Dennis lets out a small sigh of relief when Yuzu bolts.  He’d thought he would have to come up with an excuse to bolt right after their duel, but it looks like she’s handed him an excuse ready made.

He turns and looks back up to the nearby plateau.  There’s a jut of rock up on top, just big enough to conceal a small person.  And, well, she’s a pretty small person. He raises one hand in greeting. She doesn’t respond.  Honestly — there’s no one around to see her.

Instead, he wanders over to the plateau, and then makes his way up the side.  He doesn’t move with any real speed, not in too much of a hurry to meet up with her.

Selena is waiting with her arms folded, behind the rock where he thought she was, drumming her fingers against her arm.

“Could you move any slower?” she snaps.

“Sorry, sorry,” Dennis says, holding up his hands.  “I thought you didn’t want me to make it look like I knew you were there.”

She rolls her eyes, tightening her grip on her arms for a moment.  He’s surprised it doesn’t leave pock marks when she lets go.

“Where is he?” she says.  “I know you must have seen him.”

“Which one?”

Selena shoots him a dirty glare that threatens to rip him limb from limb, so he decides to answer her questions correctly.

“Unfortunately, I think I just missed him,” he says.  “However, I did catch a glimpse of a ninja scooping him up.  I’m sure with the placement of Obelisk, we’ll be able to figure out which way he went.”

Selena’s lips curl, and for a moment, he’s quite certain she’s going to strike him.  Instead, she just storms past him. She looks very warm in her several layers, and that dark purple fabric definitely doesn’t look thin.

“What is wrong with this goddamn city?” she hisses.  “What did they even do with it?”

“Real Solid Vision is well advanced out here,” Dennis says.  “In any case, I think I have an idea of where they went. Let’s head towards the ice field.”

She shoots him another glare, and he stops before he follows her.

“Don’t make it look like we’re together,” she snaps.  “Do you _want_ to blow your cover?  There’s certain to be hundreds of cameras in this goddamn city, even with all this holographic interference.”

“Oh, of course, of course,” Dennis says.  She really has a short fuse. It’s almost a little amusing to flick sparks at it.  “Follow from a distance, then. I’m sure we’ll find Sakaki-kun in a moment.”

He hesitates before he heads off towards his destination though, glancing back at her.

“Oh, did you know?  I met a girl who looks just like you a moment ago.”

He’s not sure what he expects to see.  Of course, he’s told her about the other girl with her face that he met once, during his last mission.  Back then, she didn’t react much either — but he wants to know how the Professor’s pet duelist feels about things, other than her missions.

He’s actually surprised to see her body go still.  Her face is, for once, not contorted with irritation, but instead, completely blank.  She turns her face off in the direction Dennis had gestured vaguely, and stares at nothing.  The heat wavers over her features.

Is...is that _longing_ he sees in her eyes?

“Did you?” she says finally.  And then she’s back to being herself.  “I don’t remember that being part of the mission, so keep your inane comments to yourself.”

“All right, all right,” he says with a small laugh.

He can’t get that look out of his head, though.  That strange, distant expression on her face...the faint flicker of a wound that he felt like he wasn’t supposed to see.

He shivered, and headed off, knowing that Selena wouldn’t be very far behind.


	40. R I N / Y U Y A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry, no card of the day this week! I'll pick it back up next week if I have time to draw

_All major glitches have been addressed.  Our sponsors have given us permission to roll out Real Solid Vision in an alpha test with several volunteer duelists._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 12, Entry 34.



* * *

 

Where the hell _is_ she?  Or rather... _is_ she in hell?

Rin swings her head around back and forth, trying to figure out how in the goddamn world she found herself in an active lava plane.  A whole river of bubbling lava, rippling heat and everything, runs lazily just below her, down the side of the plateau she’s found herself on.  She shivers to think that if she had driven any faster or stopped any slower as she fell through dimensions, she would have been roasted. But for real, where is she?  If there are other dimensions, does hell exist? No, that’s stupid.

She looks up through the thick, hazy air towards the heavy black-clouded sky.  Through the heat haze and smoke, she can just barely make out the shape of buildings — skyscrapers, and apartment buildings, the kind of stuff she’d seen in Tops during her very brief jaunt up there.  Is there a _city_ in the middle of all of this?  How?? Did the world end somewhere in between her dimensional transfer and now?

God, it’s so hot.  She _hates_ heat.  It’s taking everything she has to resist tugging the zipper of her suddenly too-tight riding suit down a bit.

“Do you think this is funny?” Rin asks the card stuck in her hand holder on her D-Wheel’s handlebars.

Windwitch Winter Bell just stares at her silently.  She sighs. She hasn’t heard a peep out of her card in a while — so long now that she’s starting to think the first time she heard it, she was just going crazy.

Still...

Despite the heat, she shivers.  She can still remember that sharp, icy cold voice in her head — less words, and more of a cutting thought that wasn’t quite her own, but still seemed to come from her own head.

 _Time to go_ , that thought had been.  And the next thing Rin knew, she’d been in a different apocalyptic city.

She shakes the thoughts away.  Now isn’t the time. She needs to come up with a new plan to find Yugo.  After that run in with her lookalikes, things are more complicated now. She knows that someone who looks like her kidnapped Yugo, but if there are at _least_ two _other_ doppelgangers running around...that makes her search that much harder.

“Any ideas?” she asks her card.

But Winter Bell is still silent.  Maybe Rin’s going crazy. Without Yugo, she doesn’t have much of a reason to try and stay sane.

She’s about to turn her D-Wheel around when she hears the scream.

Her head whips around over her shoulder, and she smacks her visor to retract up so that she can see more clearly.  She catches a small flash of purple light in the corner of her eye and swears, dragging her D-Wheel around so that she can get a better view.

There’s a big bridge over the lava river just ahead of her.  She hears another scream, and sees a small shape, a person on the bridge, stumbling backwards.  There are three other people advancing towards that speck, and then there’s another flash of light and the person disappears.

Rin’s stomach drops out, and she feels that icy sensation crawling through her veins again — though she’s not sure if that’s just her anxiety, or if it’s Winter Bell reacting.  She remembers this — she saw this, just once, when she’d searched that apocalyptic city for some sign of Yugo. She’d seen people in blue suits and masks cornering a woman and her two-year-old before the light went off and both of them dissolved into a pair of cards.

There’s one more person on the bridge, and they trip and fall, landing on their back as the other three advance towards them.

Rin revs her D-Wheel and explodes forward.  There’s a huge jump between the end of her plateau and the bridge, but she doesn’t slow down.

If Yugo had been the one driving, she imagines she probably would have yelled at him not to be so reckless, there’s no way they can make that jump.

But Yugo isn’t around.  She has no one here to pretend for right now.

Rin hits the jump, yanking her wheel up just before going off the edge, using her momentum to propel herself through the air.  She hits perfectly, back wheel striking the pavement first and then the front as she spins in place, right in between the people in the blue suits and the boy on the ground.  She smacks the button to turn on her Duel Disk before any of them can react.

_“Intrusion Penalty, two thousand life points.”_

Rin tightens her hands on her handlebars as a brief spark of static rushes through her.

The surprise of her arrival wears off by the time she draws her hand, and the middle blue-suit smirks at her.

“I see there’s another poor lamb coming to the slaughter,” he says, teeth bared in an evil grin.  Rin’s seen smiles like that before — it’s the kind of smile on a police officer’s face before arresting who didn’t do anything wrong, just smiling at their protests.

She wants to rip that kind of smile right off of every face that’s ever had it.

“My turn,” she says, without reacting to the boy’s jibe.

_Read the field.  What’s in front of me that I need to blow down?_

There are six monsters on the field — all of them look like robotic dogs made out of gears.  There is also one spell card, something that looks like a floating mechanical engine loaded with cannons.  No face downs. Breathe in, breathe out.

“Since I control no monsters, I special summon Windwitch - Ice Bell from my hand,” she says.

Her witch appears in a blessed gust of icy wind, balancing out the horrible heat beautifully.  

“When Ice Bell is special summoned, I can special summon another level four or lower Windwitch from my deck!  I’m summoning Glass Bell!”

Her second witch appears, giggling and spinning around Ice Bell, who dances in the air with the other for a moment with fresh giggles.

“When a Windwitch is special summoned, I can activate this!  Continuous Spell, Bitter Gale! As long as I have a Windwitch on the field, all effect damage is doubled — and wouldn’t you know, Ice Bell’s second effect is to deal five hundred points of damage when she’s summoned.  So take twice the blizzard!”

Ice Bell giggles, spinning in midair before tapping the end of her long bell with her baton to send out a pretty peal.  An icy cold blast rips through her opponents, making all of them step back. One of them actually drops to one knee, frost clinging to their suit.

“Not bad,” one of them coughs, waving the wind away from his face.  “But if that’s all you can manage, it’s barely more than a scratch. Neither of your monsters can destroy any of ours — we’ll take you out next turn.”

_Okay.  Their attack points are now at twenty-two hundred, twenty-one hundred, and eighteen hundred._

Rin does math for just a second.  Then she nods sharply.

“There won’t be a next turn,” she says.

She revs her D-Wheel as loud as she can, and peals forward, her witches flying along with her.  The three leap out of the way with surprise as she bolts past them before spinning back around, leaping off the bridge and hitting a sloped plateau.  This is the way duels are _meant_ to be played — with the wind in your hand and the roar of the earth speeding away beneath you.

“I activate the effect of Windwitch - Flurry Bell from my hand!  When I deal effect damage, I can discard one card from my hand to normal summon her without tributing!”

Her two witches part in midair to allow their new comrade to descend.  The tall, elegant being smiles behind the brim of her hat, letting out a gentle laugh that sounds like a bell.

“It’s still not going to be enough,” one of her opponents snaps.

“Let me finish my damn turn before you talk shit!  I’m tuning Glass Bell and Ice Bell for a Synchro summon!”

She reaches the end of the sloped plateau, leaps off it, and spins back around to the bridge as the summoning gates appear around her.

“Midwinter wind — make ice and snow my power and blow through!  Synchro summon!”

Ice cold wind cuts through the field — despite the heat of the lava, the railings on either side of the bridge freeze solid, and when Rin lands her bike and spins it back around to face her opponents, the ground in front of her freezes to a thick sheet of ice.

“Level 7!  Windwitch - Winter Bell!”

Her monster appears in a rush of snowflakes and ice crystals, letting out a low, ringing cry.  Rin throws her hand forward.

“Winter Bell can use the effect of one level four or lower Windwitch monster in the Graveyard as its own!  I’m choosing Ice Bell — you take another doubled five hundred points of damage!”

The wind that exploded from Winter Bell this time, the ghost of Ice Bell glimmering inside its prismatic body, was enough to send her opponents slipping and sliding backwards on their heels, tumbling across the icy ground.

“We all still have life points — ” one tries to cough.

“Shut _up_!  I’m not done!” Rin shouts.  She points directly at the spell card in front of her, the hovering metallic engine with the cannons.  Winter Bell’s freezing thoughts are in her head, and she knows what to do. “I activate Flurry Bell’s effect!  I can destroy her to destroy all other monsters on the field!”

She catches just a hint of panic in her three opponent’s stances as they try to get up from the ice.

“That will destroy yours too!” one of them shouts.  “You must know that our spell’s effect is to —”

“Deal damage equal to the attack of any destroyed monster?” Rin shoots back.  “Don’t worry. I know exactly what I’m doing — Flurry Bell! Ringing Blizzard!”

Flurry Bell rings the bell on her broomstick furiously, and the sound waves turns into waves of ice and snow.  Winter Bell shatters, and then one by one, each of her opponent’s monsters freeze solid and explode into shards of ice.

Her opponents all yell as they’re flung back and land to slide over the ice.  Their engine spell card roars to life, cannons spinning around to take aim at each duelist.

“I activate the effect of the spell card I discarded for Flurry Bell’s summon,” Rin calls over the wind.  “Storm Shelter! When this card is in my Graveyard and I’d take effect damage, I can negate effect damage to me once by banishing this card from my Graveyard!”

A glowing white shield bursts over her head, encapsulating her in a protective dome as the winds blowing shards stab into the ground beside her.  The cannon fires, but the energy just bounces off of her shield. It strikes true at her opponents, however, causing them to slide all the way down the bridge across the ice

Her opponents’ life points all hit zero.  Rin snaps her visor back up as the nice, icy cold starts to melt away from the heat again.  

She turns her seat to the boy still sitting on the ground behind her, intending to ask him what the hell’s going on.

Her question meets empty air, however, as it looks like the boy is already fleeing.

“Hey, wait!” she shouts.  “Goddammit!’

She punches the seat in front of her.  Damn. She’s going to need to find another avenue to learn something about this goddamn weird ass world she’s in.

* * *

“Odd-Eyes!!  Finish it with a direct attack — Spiral Strike Burst!”

Odd-Eyes roars and lets out a mighty ray of breath from its mouth.  Halil yelps, falling back down into the snow on his butt. He pouts.

“Awww,” he says.  “But I have learned much from this!  Thank you!”

He hops to his feet and scurries across the snow to grab Yuya’s hands while Odd-Eyes vanishes.  Yuya smiles while Halil shakes his hands up and down.

“It was a fun duel!  Thanks!”

“Thank you for teaching me so much!  I shall have to learn more of this ‘Entertainment Duel!’”

The other opponent looks less than enthused while she hands off her Pendulum cards to Gongenzaka, scowling.  Halil presses his own card into Yuya’s palm, smiles brightly, and then turns to dash after the girl while she stalks away.

“Now that that is over with,” Tsukikage says with a sigh.  “Yuya-dono, we must keep moving.”

“What is this all about?” Gongenzaka says, lumbering over to the pair of them.  “Why are you traveling around with this competitor, Yuya?”

Yuya glances at Tsukikage first.  The rush of the duel is wearing off, and now he’s remembering why he came this direction in the first place.

“Reiji-dono believes Yuya-dono to be in harm’s way, and has asked me to escort him back to LDS,” Tsukikage said, muffled through his carf.

Gongenzaka’s eyebrows shoot up to his hairline.

“In danger?  It’s a tournament,” he says.  “Yuya, is this some kind of prank?”

“I don’t know,” Yuya says, rubbing the back of his neck.  “But I did see some other people in the tournament who aren’t supposed to be here.  They look like bad news.”

Tsukikage looks very pained to have to explain this, even though half his face is covered.

“This tournament is a diversion against an invading enemy force.  Reiji-dono believes Yuya to be a target of iminent importance to this force.  It is imperative that we evacuate him to a safe location.

Yuya just pointed at Tsukikage in answer to Gongenzaka’s dumbfounded look.

“Invasion?  Target? This sounds ridiculous,” Gongenzaka rumbles.

“Be assured, Gongenzaka-dono, I do not speak of these things lightly.  It is in the best interests of the safety of your friend if he comes with me to LDS now.”

Gongenzaka actually looks like he’s about to argue, clearly not completely on board with this whole ‘invasion’ thing.  If Yuya hadn’t seen those Obelisk Force guys himself, he might be skeptical too. Hell, despite having seen them he’s still not sure if he really believes it.  It seems pretty weird and convoluted for something just as a prank or a trick though. Tsukikage seems the trustworthy sort anyway.

Before Gongenzaka can bring up another objection, however, Yuya hears the sound of feet scrabbling against the ice.  He looks up towards the top of the nearby glacier. A shape appears at the top, clearly out of breath and hesitating at the lip of the cliff.  Yuya perks up — Yuzu! She must have caught up with them after getting his message!

“Yuzu!!” he calls, waving from the bottom.

Her eyes flicker down, and her hair slides over one of her shoulders with her motion.  Yuya’s smile slips. Hang on a second — that’s not Yuzu.

The girl’s eyes widen though, and she turns around so that she can start climbing down the side of the glacier.  It takes her a moment to make it down, and before she reaches the bottom, her foot slips and she squeaks, tumbling back down into the snow.  Is she okay?

Yuya jogs over to her, and when she shakes her bangs from her eyes, he realizes that it’s the girl he’s seen before, the one he mistook for Yuzu at the harbor and elsewhere.  Her face breaks with relief.

“Ruri-dono,” Tsukikage says.  “I didn’t know you had been cleared to leave the hospital.”

“I’m fine,” the girl says.  “I came to help.”

She looks _just_ like Yuzu.  It’s surreal, seeing Yuzu’s nose and mouth and cheekbones, but this other girl’s dark, long hair and magenta eyes.  Even her voice sounds really similar now that he has a moment to listen to it.

She doesn’t quite look at him, and when her gaze flickers to his, she quickly looks away.  There’s something...weirdly furtive.

“Are you okay?” he asks, holding out a hand to her to help her get up.

She hesitates, and then tentatively takes his hand, letting him help her to her feet.  Her eyes finally meet his, and for the first time, they’re face to face, without her disappearing all of a sudden.

“You’re...Ruri, right?” he says.

Her eyes widen, and her lips part.

“How did you know that?” she says.

“Yuzu told me about your duel with her,” Yuya says.  And as he says it, the rest of the pieces fall into place — Yuzu told him about Ruri, a girl from another dimension that had been invaded by Fusion users.  The Obelisk Force — that must be the Fusion soldiers.

Ruri bites her lip, briefly looking away.  Then she shakes her head, straightening her shoulders.

“Then you know that my friend Yuto, who looks like you, was also taken away by Academia,” she says.  “And Tsukikage-san must have told you that they may have come to target you this time.”

“He said something like that,” Yuya says.  “But why me?”

Ruri looks pale, and she shakes her head.

“I have no idea.  But they’ve taken Yuto, and there’s a boy here from Fusion who looks like you, who is fleeing them as well.  A girl from Synchro who looks like me also seems to have someone taken from her. I think the probability they’re here for you is very strong.”

Yuya’s stomach twists nervously.  But why? Why _him_?  Is this because of Pendulum summoning?  That’s the only thing he can think of that makes him stand out as anything out of the ordinary.

Gongenzaka crunches through the snow over to them, folding his arms and looming over them.  Ruri’s eyes widen, and she takes a small step back, clearly startled by him.

“And you are positive that Yuya is in danger?” Gongenzaka says.

Ruri stares at him for a moment, and Yuya’s not sure if it’s Gongenzaka’s size, or his very intense face that strangers tend to think is more angry than it actually is that is worrying her.  She shakes herself out of it then, and nods.

“I don’t want to let anyone else be taken by Academia,” she says.

Gongenzaka considers her for a long moment, and Yuya almost wants to tell him to lay off her.  Not everyone understands Gongenzaka faces after all. But then he lets out a huff, and nods.

“Very well!  It seems that there are enough of you telling the same story that I, the man Gongenzaka, can be swayed.  What is our plan?”

Yuya feels something lift off his shoulders, and he smiles.  With Gongenzaka on board, he’s sure they can’t be beaten.

Ruri turns on her Duel Disk, flipping to a map of the city.

“Our safest route is to wrap around through the ancient ruins field, through the jungle, and back out through the back of the volcano field,” she says.  “We can go into LDS from the back entrance there. Reiji-san has some of his team already out trying to keep Obelisk Force’s attention elsewhere.”

“The ancient ruins field is not far,” Tsukikage says, and they all turn to look at him pointing.  “Quickly. I fear in a larger group we will attract more attention.”

He darts on ahead, disappearing from sight.  Damn, he’s a good ninja — Yuya can’t even see him anywhere, and this tundra field is pretty wide open.

Ruri takes the lead next though, and Yuya and Gongenzaka follow.

Yuya’s not sure what he should say — or really, if there’s anything he can say.  He keeps shooting Ruri a look, but her eyes are focused forward. He wonders how long it’s been since her friend was kidnapped.  God, he can’t even imagine. If Yuzu got kidnapped...he’s not sure what he would do.

Sooner than he expects, the ice starts to melt away beneath their feet, and instead of snow they’re walking on cobblestone.  Even the temperature changes dramatically, turning from an icy cold to a pleasant coolness.

Slowly, the flat cobblestone turns to tall, arching ruins, sandy-colored pillars and crumbling old buildings.  Now _this_ looks like a fun Action Field to duel on.  Geez, he shouldn’t be thinking like that at a time like this.  But after all this work to qualify for this tournament, and he’s not even really participating?  It kind of chafes.

Tsukikage reappears suddenly before them, causing all three of them to skid to a stop.

“This way,” he hisses urgently.  “There’s Obelisk Force up ahead.”

“This far already?” Ruri says, eyes widening.

“A new platoon just arrived through dimensional transfer.  We need to stay low.”

Up until now, this has all seemed like a very elaborate game.  But Tsukikage’s clear tension, and Ruri’s actual panic, suddenly bring it all to life.  Yuya feels nerves crashing through his stomach, and he resists the urge to go for his goggles.

Ruri pushes him forward so that he’s sandwiched between her and Tsukikage, and Gongenzaka takes up the rear, hurrying along after Tsukikage along the bottom of a fortress wall.  The shadow hangs heavy over their heads and Yuya feels his heart in his throat.

“Oh?  Are there duelists here?”

Tsukikage swears, skidding to a stop so that Yuya runs into his back.  From around a corner, he hears the clanking of metal against stone, and for a moment, he chokes on his own heart.

But it’s not the Obelisk Force — it’s...a trio of knights?  Oh, wait, he recognizes them — they’re from that foreign British school.  He forgot they’d qualified.

One of them grins broadly.

“How convenient!  We were just looking for someone to duel.  And here they have arrived.”

Tsukikage swears again.  

“We do not have time for this,” he says.

“What on earth are you talking about?  This is a tournament, is it not?” the knight says, and all three of them turn on their Duel Disks.

Yuya feels a hand grab his.  Before he can think about what’s happening, Ruri’s snatched him by the hand and bolted.  He hears someone shouting after him, but before he gets dragged along on his knees, he gets his feet under him and starts running along with her.

“What about Gongenzaka and Tsukikage?” Yuya asked.

“I’m sure they can handle themselves — they’re not targets, anyway,” Ruri says.

Yuya feels awful leaving them behind, but Ruri’s grip is firm, and he has no choice but to follow after her.

He can only hope that he’s making the right decision.


	41. R U R I / Y U Y A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [ Winter's Keen ](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/180121650229/winters-keen-normal-trap-when-an-opponents)

_Results of alpha testing have been varied.  Some duelists experience glitches where RSV turns off in the middle of a duel, and their ability to interact with the monsters stops abruptly.  Results seem to be consistent among a select group of testers, while the other group does not experience this issue at all. Further tests between the two groups are requested._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 13, Entry 7.



* * *

Once he falls into the step of it, Yuya is faster than she is, and Ruri is the one struggling to stay alongside him.  The ancient ruins field is covered in loose rocks and debris, and it’s a struggle for her to keep her footing despite having spent the last few months trying to navigate a ruined city of her own.

Yuya, however, moves like a monkey.  He dodges loose rock with ease and leaps up over fallen pillars as though he’s weightless, always turning back to give Ruri a hand up it.

“Where are we going to go?” Yuya finally gasps at her, seemingly finally running out of breath.

“We need to go back to LDS.  It’s the only place we can be safe for sure,” Ruri gasps back.  “We —”

In her pocket, she feels a faint vibration.  For a moment, she thinks it must be her pager, before she remembers that she lost her pager during the first invasion and never got a new one in Standard.  No, the vibration is melodic, the feeling of something humming in the back of its throat.

Assembled Nightingale is warning her.

Ruri grabs Yuya’s hand before he can start clambering up the broken steps to the next broken down castle, yanking him backwards.  His eyes widen, but he doesn’t resist as she pulls them both into a tight, shadowy alcove beneath the stairs.

Moments later, she hears the footsteps above them.  Her heart hammers in her chest — her throat is dry and coated with the dust of the field.  She feels sick. For a moment, she’s back in Heartland, crunched beneath a fallen archway with Shun holding her tightly, her face buried in his shoulder to prevent herself from screaming as the Academia soldiers come oh so close to their hiding spot.

“All right, so it’s best if you all fan out in your usual groups.  Looks like this place has got a few different fields, so he could be anywhere.”

Yuya sucks in a breath, eyes widening, and a moment later, Ruri recognizes that voice too.

Shiunin Sora.

Yuya tries to wriggle free of the alcove, but Ruri grabs him, hugging his arms to his sides to prevent him from leaving.  Does he not know that Shiunin Sora is their enemy?

The footsteps reach the bottom of the stairs, and from here, Ruri can only just barely see the edge of Shiunin’s ponytail as he steps to the side of the stairs.  The clickity sound of a lollipop knocking against his teeth makes her hair stand on end.

“Group A, head towards the jungle area.  Group B, to the ice field. We’ve already got a group in the lava area, so Group C, you help A in the jungle area; that’s gonna be the hardest to comb through.”

“And you, sir?”

“I’m taking this area.  I’ve got some unfinished business to take care of.”

Yuya looks so pale, his eyes wide and staring at some place over Ruri’s shoulder.  It must have only now occurred to him that Shiunin is not his friend.

Ruri holds her breath — from this angle, she can see the Obelisk soldiers of one group jogging off down the street.  If they had only turned around, they would have seen her and Yuya right here.

She waits, breath held, for a full minute.  The footsteps have all disappeared, but Shiunin...she can still hear him sucking through his teeth on his lollipop.  What is he waiting for? Does he know they’re here? If that’s the case, then why did he send his soldiers away?

With a sudden burst of motion, Yuya breaks through Ruri’s grip and wriggles out of the alcove.  Ruri chokes on a gasp, making a swipe for him, but he’s quick, and a moment later, he’s out and moving towards Shiunin.

“Sora!”

Ruri swears in her head, trying to unfold herself from inside the alcove.

She stumbles out in time to see Shiunin turn with a snap at his name, eyes widening.  He almost drops his lollipop when his mouth falls open. Clearly, he didn’t know they were there after all.

“Yuya?” he says.  “What are you doing here?”

And then his eyes flicker nervously off in the directions he sent the Obelisk Force.  He steps towards Yuya.

“You’re back,” Yuya says, his voice cracking.  “Why are you...why are you with Academia?”

Shiunin actually bites his lip, eyes casting down to towards the ground.  He takes another step towards Yuya.

“Yuya, listen, you need to —”

Ruri’s not about to let him get any closer.  She shoves herself from the wall, grabbing Yuya by the shoulder and shoving him behind her, turning on her Duel Disk.  Shiunin’s eyes snap to her, and his whole expression contorts from the previous surprise into a dark anger.

“So you’re here too,” he says, lifting up his arm with his Disk.  “Where’s your brother? Or are you going to try and hide him from me again?”

“Sora, listen!” Yuya cries, trying to push past Ruri.  Ruri puts her arm out to hold him back.

“I will not let you take anyone I care about ever again,” she snarls.

Shiunin turns on his Duel Disk, and Ruri tenses.  Yuya tries to push forward again with another strangled sound.

“Yuya, get out of here,” Shiunin says, crunching hard on his lollipop.  “And you are going to tell me where Kurosaki is, or you’re gonna regret it.”

“You won’t get near either him or Yuya!” Ruri shouts.

But before she can enter a duel, another shout rings out over head, and she and Sora both look up.

A shadow leaps down from the top of the crumbling temple above them, the shadowy flapping of wings coming to mind as her brother lands heavily between her and Shiunin.

“Niisan!”

“Take him and get out of here,” Shun snaps.  “I’ll handle this.”

“No, we can take him together,” Ruri says, stepping forward.

Shiunin’s eyes light up with a wild ferocity, a huge grin splitting his face.

“I knew you’d have to show up if I messed with your little sis,” he says.  “All right, bastard, let’s settle this.”

“Ruri, _go_ ,” Shun snaps.  “Now!”

“Sora, stop this!! You’ll get hurt again!” Yuya shouts.  “Sora! Listen to me!”

Yuya is still trying to get around Ruri and Shun to Shiunin, and Ruri can’t let him be blinded by his former friendship with this enemy soldier.  Shun is right — she needs to focus on the mission.

Blinking back nervous tears — _I’ll see him again, I will_  — she grabs Yuya by the arm and drags him around.  Yuya fights her every step of the way, still shouting Shiunin’s name — but Shiunin doesn’t so much as blink towards him.

“He’s here to take you away, Yuya, we have to go!” Ruri shouts.  

“He’s my friend!  I can talk to him!  Ruri, let me go!”

Ruri doesn’t let up, though, dragging him one step at a time until they’re diving into the thick, dark foliage of the jungle field encroaching on the edge of the ancient ruins.  This is a _bad_ place to be.  Visibility is low, and Shiunin just sent two groups of Obelisk this way — plus, Yuya is still struggling, causing them to make too much noise.

“Listen — listen!” Ruri says, turning around to grab him by both arms.  “I know you think Shiunin was your friend! But he’s an Academia soldier!  He was sent here to spy on Standard!”

“You don’t know him,” Yuya says, his face screwing up with stubbornness.  “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“He was lying to you, the whole time,” Ruri says, tightening her grip.  “And I know how much that _hurts_.  But now is not the time — right now we have to get you to safety.”

Yuya’s eyes are actually teary, and he sets his jaw.

“Can you promise your brother isn’t going to hurt him again?” he asks.

Ruri can’t promise anything.  Shun will absolutely destroy that boy if he has the chance, and Ruri can’t even begin to feel bad about it.  But she squeezes Yuya’s arms.

“Shun isn’t like Academia,” she says.

Yuya doesn’t look convinced.  He stares her right in the eyes, as though he’s looking for some kind of proof that she’s telling the truth.  She’s afraid that if he looks too deep, he’ll see what a liar she actually is.

The stare off might have gone forever if the bushes had suddenly rustled near them.  Ruri chokes on a breath, and Yuya’s eyes widen. They both turn their heads as one to the foliage beside them as something punches through, catches sight of them, and trips out of the momentary panic that seizes its body, falling face first onto the ground.

The boy is up on his hands and knees in a second, eyes wide and a hiss dragging out of his throat.

Ruri freezes.  For a moment, she feels her whole body rattle as she thinks _Yuto._

Then her vision clears, and she recognizes him better.  It’s the boy Reiji was hiding at LDS.

The Fusion version of Yuto.  Yuuri.

* * *

 _Oh_ , Yuya thinks, feeling dizzy.   _This must be what Yuzu’s felt like._

For a moment, he can only stare at the boy crouched on the ground in front of him.  It’s like looking into a mirror — at least, at first. Then he notices the bumps and bruises on the boy’s face, and the mud on his cheek, and his bedraggled, dark purple hair, and his wild, nervous magenta eyes.

The boy scrambles to his feet, stumbling back and jerking his arm up, turning on his Duel Disk.

“Don’t think you can drag me back, you damn bitch,” he hisses.

Ruri immediately throws up her hands.

“Yuuri-san!  It’s all right!  I’m not the one who’s after you!”

Ruri knows him?  Yuya’s frustration with the Sora situation has completely faded away with the shock of this new development.  He shifts his weight over, and the sound makes Yuuri’s eyes shoot to him.

His lips drop open, and his eyes fix onto Yuya’s.  For a long moment, they just stare at each other, and Yuya has the distinct impression of staring at a cat’s unblinking, confused stare.

Yuuri’s eyes flip to Ruri, and then back to Yuya.  Slowly, cautiously, he lowers his Duel Disk arm. His lips move slowly, and his gaze flips back and forth a few more times.

“You must be....Yuya,” he says, eyes narrowing at Yuya.

Yuya startles — how does he know his name??

“Uh, yeah,” he says.  “How did you know?”

Yuuri’s nose wrinkles.

“A very rude girl chased after me and said she thought I was you,” he says, looking offended by the very idea.  It makes Yuya feel somehow condescended to, even though Yuuri is very much more in a bedraggled state than Yuya is.

His heart leaps at Yuuri’s words, though, and he steps forward.

“Yuzu!  You must have met Yuzu!  Is she okay?”

“How should I know?” Yuuri sniffs.

His suspicious eyes flicker back to Ruri again.  Ruri holds up her hands again, taking a small step back from him.

“My name is Kurosaki Ruri,” she says, slowly, as though she’s speaking to a nervous animal.  “I’m from the XYZ dimension. I’m looking for someone who has the same face as you who was taken by Academia.”

Yuuri’s eyes narrow suspiciously.  But after a beat, he slowly puts his arm down, turning off his Duel Disk.

“She wouldn’t bother with tricks like this,” he mutters.  “You’re both too stupidly straightforward.”

Yuya isn’t sure if he should feel like he’s been insulted or not.  Yuuri looks pretty banged up, though, and he wonders if he’s been running from the Obelisk Force too.

“So you’re...Yuuri?” he asks.  “What are you doing here?”

Yuuri eyes the two of them with suspicion, his lip curling.

“I don’t see why I should tell you,” he says.  “I have places to be. Goodbye.”

He turns, but Ruri leaps forward.

“Yuuri-san, wait!  If you come with us to LDS, Akaba-san will be able to protect you.”

Yuuri lets out a little snarl.

“If you think I’m going to trust that man again...”

“It was _me_ you saw that day with Akaba, not the other girl.  He’s Academia’s enemy. The last thing he wants is to let you fall back into enemy hands.”

Yuuri looks over his shoulder at her, eyes narrowed.  Yuya shifts from foot to foot, feeling completely out of the loop.  He feels like he’s jumped into the middle of a television show he’s never seen before.  He doesn’t know what Ruri means by the ‘other girl’, or why he and Yuuri are targets of Academia, or if Yuzu’s all right or not, or why Academia is the thing in the first place.

His head is all of these jumbled thoughts when he feels his bracelet heat up against his wrist.  He blinks, lips parting — and then his eyes shoot to Ruri.

“Ruri!!” he says, trying to grab for her.

But it’s too late — her eyes widen as her body turns to a bright pink light, and she disappears in a poof of fizzling sparkles.  Yuuri leaps back with a startled snarl, and Yuya’s hand swipes through air. Dammit! Why does his bracelet keep —

Hang on.  It always seems to do this right when Yuzu comes nearby.  Is Yuzu near?

For a moment, he dares to hope that Yuzu’s caught up with him.  But only a half a breath later, he remembers Yuuri’s panic at seeing Ruri.  Ruri insisting that she wasn’t ‘the other girl’ here to take him back to Academia.

Yuya’s not sure how much he trusts his luck today.

He grabs Yuuri by the arm and yanks him backwards into the bushes.  Yuuri looks like he’s ready to yell, but Yuya clamps a hand over his mouth, pulling them both backwards and crouching down in the foliage.  He holds his breath.

A few moments later, he hears the faintest of footsteps in the brush.  Yuuri freezes in the middle of struggling with Yuya’s hands, his eyes widening.

It takes everything Yuya has not to leap out immediately when he sees her — it must be Yuzu after all!  She’s got the same face, her ponytail makes the same shape...oh. She’s got a ponytail. Not pigtails.

Yuya holds his breath, suddenly very glad that he didn’t count on his luck.

The girl is dress in a sharp purple uniform, her green eyes as cutting as Yuzu’s are soft and kind.  Her dark blue hair is pulled into a severe ponytail, and as casually as though she’s holding a gun, she has her Duel Disk slightly raised, eyes flickering around.  Yuya and Yuuri are currently hidden in the bushes, but as well as Yuya can see her through the leaves, he’s positive she’ll notice them soon.

Yuuri’s starting to hyperventilate beside him.  His eyes are wide, and his whole body shakes with every short, strangled breath through his nose.  This is the girl Yuuri’s scared of — she must be from Academia. If Obelisk Force is here for Yuya...maybe they’re here for Yuuri too.  And Yuuri looks like he’s in no state to handle himself right now.

She’s just far enough away that Yuya thinks he can get away with a few whispers.

“Give me your jacket,” he hisses.

Yuuri’s panic attack subsides for just one startled moment, eyes flashing to Yuya with confusion.

“Switch jackets with me,” Yuya says again.  “She’s after you, right? But if I’ve got your jacket, she’ll think I’m you.  I’ll draw her off. As soon as we’ve put some distance between us, you run back that way — there’s a guy called Kurosaki Shun, from XYZ, working with Akaba.  He can get you back to LDS.”

Yuuri’s eyes widen, and then his brow wrinkles.  Yuya takes his hand off of Yuuri’s mouth and Yuuri gasps.

“Why?” he hisses.  “You’ll become her target instead.”

“That’s my plan,” Yuya says.  “At the very least, if we’re not together, she can’t get both of us at once.  Right?”

Yuuri stares at him with wide eyes, and Yuya can’t tell if it’s from the panic or the shock.  Then, finally, he slides his jacket from his shoulders, moving as quietly as possible. Yuya unbuttons his from his shoulders, and switches with Yuuri.  The red jacket is too big for him, dangling just over his fingertips but it’ll do.

His heart screams against his ribs, and he sucks in a steadying breath.

He can do this.  He’s an expert at navigating Action Fields — better than Yuuri, at least, and probably better than her.  He can do this.

He meets Yuuri’s eyes one last time, and gives him the most reassuring smile he can manage.

Then he shoots straight up from the bush.  He waits until he sees her eyes snap to him — and then he turns and bolts, deeper into the jungle.  He can’t hear past his own stumbling steps, but he hopes to god that she’s following him.

He almost laughs.

What a funny thing to hope for — that the person who wants to kidnap him is following.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you as always everyone for your patience with my wonky updates. As I've mentioned before, I'm in the midst of moving so expect the next week or two to either skip updates or have weird posting days like this update. Thank you as always for your patience and support <3


	42. Y U U R I / H O K U T O

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [Bitter Gale](https://oddeyesarcpendulumdragon.tumblr.com/post/180532863294/bitter-gale-continuous-spell-you-can-activate-this)

_ There seems to be no logical difference between the duelists having trouble with phasing through the RSV and duelists who don’t.  Group A (those who phase through on occasion) seems to only differ from Group B in several respects: 1) lower win rates in professional dueling circuits, 2) have recently or often switched decks.  In counterpoint, Group B displays 1) consistent win rates in recorded duels, 2) have used the same deck since beginning dueling. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 13, Entry 105.



* * *

This is so stupid.  This is so  _ stupid _ .  Why is he trusting any of them??

Yuuri hurries through the undergrowth, keeping an eye out over his shoulder to make sure that he hasn’t been betrayed and that no one is following him.  But it seems that crazy boy was right — switching jackets worked. That bitch is following him now instead.

_ Why did he do that? _ he thinks, branches smacking him in the face.   _ He must be stupid.  Or arrogant, and thinks he can take her on. _

Venom makes a soft coughing hiss at the back of Yuuri’s head and Yuuri snorts.

_ He wasn’t trying to help us. _

_ But he could have been.  _

_ He seemed sincere? _

_ Do we know what sincerity looks like? _

_ He did put himself in danger. _

_ And now, here we are, running back to find someone who works with Akaba Reiji and making the stupid decision of trusting that man again. _

He swallows his thoughts and keeps running.

His plants hiss at the approach of unfiltered daylight, and Yuuri slows, carefully edging to the end of the jungle.  He doesn’t want to leave the trees and foliage behind, and his whole body tenses at the idea of being out in the open.  But Yuya said that there was someone here who could help him get to LDS — someone from XYZ. He grimaces at the thought.  XYZ is such a terrible, clunky form of summoning — and he can’t be sure whether an XYZ duelist will welcome anyone from Fusion with open arms.  On the other hand, this Kurosaki Shun might end up being more trustworthy than anyone else — a refugee from the war might be more than willing to make sure Academia didn’t get anything it wanted, and Yuuri could count at least on that baser instinct to keep him out of Academia’s hands.

He carefully peers through the leaves and out into the ancient ruins field.  He doesn’t...see anyone. He can’t even hear anything. The ruins seem entirely empty and quiet, the colors of the setting sun turning everything orange and red, long shadows spreading down from the broken pillars.  His skin crawls.

Should he risk leaving cover?  Should he make a break for that next building?  What if there’s someone hiding in there in ambush?  Where the fuck is Kurosaki Shun?

The shadows are just deep enough that he might be able to use them for cover.  He carefully edges himself out of the trees, eyes flickering in all directions, looking for movement.  He’s so alert, so tense, that the moment he hears the scrabble of a foot on the stone near him, he whips around and strikes out with both hands.

He hears a squeak, and then something small but heavy drops onto him full body and they both go down.  Yuuri panics. Venom screams, and he lets the sound out of his own throat.

“Darling!!!  Whatever is wrong??  Did I hurt you? Don’t worry, darling, I can help!”

Yuuri flings out at the voice on top of him, shoving them away, and there’s another squeak.  He scrambles to his feet and tries to bolt, but his ankle slips and twists and he collapses with a cry.  The pain that floods up his leg lets him know immediately that he will not be running easily from now on, and that only doubles his panic.

Instead, he flips himself over so that he’s facing his attacker, whipping his arm up.  He can still use his arms, he can still fight!

In the light of the setting sun, it’s immediately apparent that this is  _ not _ an Academia soldier.  The girl is  _ tiny _ .  She’s probably half his size, though she appears to be about his age judging by her face.  Her green eyes widen and her mouth forms a little “o”, the sun catching in her frizz of orange hair.

“Oh my,” she says, putting a hand over her mouth.  “You’re not my darling at all. But you look so similar!  Who are you?”

The panic takes a moment to subside down to a gentle roar in the back of Yuuri’s head.  His ankle twinges with pain. As the panic subsides, realizing that he is not in immediate danger — anger rises up instead.

“You  _ bitch _ ,” he spits, ignoring the way she flinches with surprise.  “How  _ dare _ you —”

He tries to stand and his ankle immediately protests, making him gasp with pain.  But he tries to force himself up anyway. This little bitch! She’s  _ crippled _ him!  How is he supposed to escape Academia now?

The thought startles him back into panic and he slides back down to a sitting position, clutching at his head.  Oh god. He’s a sitting duck like this, there’s no way he can ever keep away from Academia or find safety now that he’s...

“I’m — I’m so sorry,” the girl fumbles, flapping her hands back and forth.  “Oh my goodness. Are you all right? I — I will find someone to help! Don’t worry!”

She tries to turn and go, but panic overtakes him again — he’ll be alone and helpless like this.  He manages to lurch forward and grab her wrist. 

“Don’t you dare,” he hisses.  “I — they’ll come and take me and I —”

His hand is so slick with sweaty panic that he can’t hold onto her, and his grip slides off.  But she doesn’t try to run this time, staring at him with her hands clasped to her chest and eyes wide with fright.  Yuuri tries to breathe. His plants shift and hiss in his mind, feeling his panic and panicking as well. They don’t want to be separated again.  They don’t want to be taken away from Yuuri again. Venom actually whines.

The girl looks back and forth through the ancient ruins, shifting from foot to foot and biting her lip.  She mumbles to herself, but Yuuri isn’t listening. He can’t think around the fear. He’s never been forced to face how helpless he actually feels, but now he can’t escape it.

He hears her skirt fwoosh as she sits down in front of him all of a sudden, her legs folded up under her.  She reaches into a deep pocket in her skirt and withdraws something that looks very much like an apple — albeit an apple made of blue crystal.

“I don’t know what’s going on,” she says.  “But I think I can come up with something to fix this.  One moment please.”

She cups the crystal apple in both her hands, closing her eyes.  She starts to mutter under her breath, and slowly, Yuuri’s panic subsides with sheer surprise.  Is she...trying to be a  _ fortuneteller? _  Oh, this is  _ rich _ .

She opens her eyes, and stares into her crystal apple.  She lifts it to her eyes, squinting and frowning at it.

“How odd,” she murmurs.  “Never seen fate lines like this before.”

She tilts her head back and forth, still looking into her crystal ball, and if Yuuri hadn’t been so breathless he thinks he might have laughed out loud at how ridiculous this is.  She’s actually trying to tell the future. What kind of girl is she?

Her eyes widen, then, and her whole face brightens.

“Ah!!” she says, leaping to her feet.  “A solution is already near! One moment please — I promise I won’t be far!”

Before he can stop her this time, she turns, and darts into the jungle.  He chokes. It’s not that he wanted her around — she’s crazy and probably stupid and doubts she could take on Academia — but now he’s completely alone and it’s getting darker and he can’t  _ move _ — 

He doesn’t have time to fully panic, however, because he hears her crashing through the trees once again.  At least — he hopes it’s her, and not someone else.

She bursts through the foliage, leaves and sticks in her hair and on her dress, and she smacks them off her skirt.  She sends him a triumphant smile.

“There we are!” she says.  “I’ve brought some help!”

Yuuri opens his mouth to say that there’s no one  _ here _ , stupid — 

But before he can, a silent shape peels itself out of the foliage, and Yuuri’s eyes widen — he hadn’t even  _ heard _ them.  The boy, dressed in dark clothes and a red scarf, seems to relax when he sees Yuuri.

“Yuuri-dono,” he says, bowing.  “Please do not fear — I am Hikage, and I work for Akaba Reiji.  I am here to escort you to safety.”

Yuuri feels dizzy and lightheaded.  All he can do is giggle.

“God,” he says.  “Is  _ everyone  _ here working for an Akaba?”

* * *

“I really feel like something’s up, ya know?”

Teppei waves a dismissive hand.

“Nah, I’m sure everyone’s just winding down.  It’s getting late.”

Hokuto drums his fingers against his knee, jiggling his foot.  Teppei is still fishing, but for what, Hokuto doesn’t know — like, that’s a Solid Vision hologram, right?  It’s real, right? Or is that where the real river is in the city? It’s really hard to tell where the city is underneath all this crap.

Ugh.  This had been a pretty sweet gig for the first couple of hours.  Teppei helped lure the duelists in, Hokuto took ‘em out. Didn’t even have to waste time bumbling around looking for people.  They’re already in the top four for sure at this point; their place in the finals is pretty much set. Sure, he’s pretty sure Teppei’s planning on coming in and swooping away his Pendulum cards when they’re done, but he definitely doubts Teppei can beat him.  There are only a few  _ real  _ opponents in this tournament after all, and so far, he hasn’t seen any of them.

But now, it’s been a few hours, the sun is setting, and there’s no sign of  _ anyone _ .  The jungle is  _ hot _ and  _ sticky _ and he wants to get moving again.  He wants to  _ duel _ someone dammit, not just sit around here twiddling his thumbs.

He stands up, and Teppei glances at him, making a pouty face.

“Hey, partner, are you going somewhere?  We should stick together.”

God.  What an annoying guy.  

“I’m bored,” he says.  “And don’t give me that ‘partner’ crap.  You and I both know you haven’t done shit this whole time.”

He smirks then, lifting up one arm.

“I know your plan is to get the cards from me once I’m tired out,” he says.  “Well I’ve been dueling all day, so why don’t we just get this over with now?”

Teppei’s stupid fish mouth drops open and his eyes bulge.  He isn’t good at the initiative, is he.

“N-now hold on just a second, we’ve been working together on this, right?” he says, leaping to his feet and waving his hands, dropping his fishing pole in the process.  “A-and besides, we’re both pretty much guaranteed a spot in the finals at this point so —”

“So we’d duel each other eventually anyway,” Hokuto says, scowling.  This guy isreally getting on his nerves now. “What’s wrong? You don’t think you can win?  What are you even doing here if that’s —”

He doesn’t get a chance to finish his sentence.  Because the next thing he knows, there’s a flash of light in the shape of a person and Kurosaki Ruri stumbles out of thin air, smacking right into him and nearly sending the two of them tumbling to the ground.  Teppei actually shrieks, high pitched like a child, and leaps backwards so far that he almost goes right off the edge and into the river.

Hokuto manages to keep his feet, grabbing hold of Ruri’s shoulders to hold her up too — it  _ is _ Ruri, right?  He remembers the uncanny resemblance between her and Hiragi Yuzu.

But no, that’s definitely her long hair in the ridiculous bun, and her feather earrings, and her LDS uniform.  She looks dizzy and lightheaded, and for a moment, he just holds onto her, worried she might collapse.

“What the hell?” he says when she finally seems coherent enough to listen to him.  “Where the hell did you come from?” 

Ruri’s eyes are wide and her breaths are short.  She looks around wildly as she steps back and out of Hokuto’s grip.

“Still in the jungle,” she gasps.  “Thank god — Hokuto-san, how far are the ancient ruins?”

“Huh?  The ruins field is like, on the other side from here.  Are you okay?”

Ruri whirls on him, and then notices Teppei and whirls to him next.  She points at Teppei, and then at Hokuto.

“Both of you,” she says.  “Come with me right now! We need to find Sakaki Yuya right away!”

“Huh?  Yuya? What for?” Hokuto says.

“No time to explain!  We’re on a tight timetable!  Let’s go!”

And she charges off in the wrong direction, so Hokuto quickly grabs her wrist.

“That way,” he says, pointing.  “That’s the direction of the ancient ruin.”

She flushes, but doesn’t stop, spinning and bolting off.  Hokuto glances at Teppei. He’s still staring after her like a fish, mouth hanging open and eyes bulged.  Hokuto rolls his eyes. Well, he doesn’t know what Ruri’s on, but clearly something’s up. And it’s more interesting than what he’s doing now.

“You heard her,” he says, starting after the wake of rippling foliage.  “Let’s go.”


	43. S E L E N A / R I N / Y U Z U

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Card of the Day: [ Verdes Queen Blue Butterfly](https://66.media.tumblr.com/ca0550808f180e0cfe43ad409e3c71d9/tumblr_pj64rdy3YM1wgflrqo1_540.png)

_ Many members of Group B have expressed sentiments of anthropomorphization towards their Duel Monsters.  Participant RAY-A expressed that her “monsters seem way happier being able to touch the ground and play like this.”  This seems to be another major difference between Group B and Group A, among whom none have expressed such sentiments.  However, any correlation between this and the glitches seems preposterous, and has been unanimously discarded as unworthy of further study. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 13, Entry 120.



* * *

He’s surprisingly fast, but he’s not quiet.

Selena doesn’t bother running.  She can hear him scrabbling through the undergrowth up ahead of her.  Even when he pauses, ducking behind something where she can’t see him to catch his breath and check how far she is, she can hear his heavy breaths echoing against the thick foliage.  She doesn’t need to run. She’ll let him wear himself out, if he won’t face her head on.

She picks her way with a scowl over some tangling vines.  She  _ hates _ this place.  It’s hot and sticky and her uniform is too stuffy.

_ Will you give up already? _ she thinks at Sakaki Yuya.   _ You can’t get away, after all. _

But then she hears his feet scrabbling against the ground again, and he’s off.

The heat starts to recede, however, and she breathes in ice particles drifting between the trees.  They’re reaching the end of the jungle. He must have gotten turned around, not being able to see where he was going.  Soon he’ll be out in the ice field, and then he’ll have trouble hiding from her.

She turns on her Duel Disk.  Well, if he’s going to keep running away like a coward, then she’ll gladly chase him until he faces her.

_ And you’re supposed to be able to have the power to fix the world? _ she thinks with distaste.   _ Coward. _

The trees start to get smaller and thinner, and a moment later, she hears his feet crunching into the snow, hears him swear as he loses his footing and falls into a drift.  There we go.

She pushes through the last of the foliage and out into the ice.  Sakaki Yuya scrambles to his feet ahead of her, but this time, instead of running, he whirls to face her, lifting his Duel Disk.

“Oh, so now you’ll fight?” Selena says.  “Have you finally realized you can’t get away?”

He doesn’t respond, though he looks pale, and his jaw sets.  She lifts her own arm. In spite of herself, a buzz of excitement rushes down her arms, making her hair stand on end.   _ Finally _ .  She hates just chasing them down without a fight — finally, she’s allowed to see some  _ action. _

“You could have started with this, you know,” she said.  “You didn’t have to run.”

Yuya’s lips tighten, and he takes a half step back.

“Why are you after me?” he says.  “Why are you kidnapping people that look like me?”

He sounds almost exactly like the last two boys she hunted down.  They’d asked her what she wanted from them, too.

“You’re a necessary piece to the Professor’s plans to fix the broken world,” Selena says.  It’s only fair that he be told, after all. Only fair that he understands what’s at stake. “If you want to play your role in this important endeavor, then come with me to meet the Professor.  We don’t have to make this a fight.”

She feels disappointed, though, thinking that she might not get to duel him after all.  The other two were pretty tough, and it had been pretty exhilarating to finally overcome them in the end.

She suppresses her smile when he simply tenses and lifts his arm a little higher.  So he’ll fight her — excellent.

“I don’t want anything to do with it, the way you guys do things,” he said.

She shrugs.

“Suit yourself,” she says.  “But you can’t beat me.”

She hears the soft purr of her monsters, as they begin to wake up and thrum with the anticipation of the oncoming battle.

“At least give me a challenge,” she says, tossing her ponytail back over her shoulder.

* * *

“God, where the  _ fuck _ am I!”

Rin shouts at nothing and no one, her voice echoing against the heavy black sky overhead.

Her bike rattles and shakes beneath her as she drives over the bumpy, icy ground.  She’s nearly skidded out twice in this area. But at least it’s not so goddamn hot anymore.  This ice field is way more up her alley. 

She twists her head back and forth, trying to figure out where she’s gotten now.  This huge, endless ice field seems to stretch out forever — but she can still see the buildings beneath the glaciers, just barely visible through the semi-see-through surface.  What  _ happened _ to this city?  It feels like she’s found a world on the verge of like four different apocalypses at once.

And since she found those Fusion guys, she hasn’t seen a single person anywhere.  The poor carded kids who had been defeated before she got there didn’t count. Her chest squeezed a bit thinking about the cards in her pocket — like, she couldn’t just  _ leave _ them there, right?

Well, also except for those two weirdoes she’d met afterward, the butterfly-girl and the kung fu guy, but they hadn’t talked to her either or told her what was going on.  They’d just demanded a duel out of her. It was a pain in the ass, and she’d been too annoyed to hold back much, so...well, they were a little too unconscious to tell her anything  _ after _ she won.  They hadn’t seemed like those Fusion guys at least, though...so how many people are out here dueling?

That had taken precious time.  She needs to find clues to where Yugo was!  He’s probably crying right now, the big baby.  She needs to find him.

Up ahead, the world drops off.  No, not quite — it’s just an ice cliff.  Oh, hey! There’s someone standing on top of it!!

“Hey!!” she shouts.  “Hey!”

The shape is just a bit too far away for her to make out what kind of person it is, but when they look back at the sound of her voice — 

Her D-Wheel takes her closer, and before she can shout out again, the figure on the cliff turns to pink sparkles and disappears.  She swears, hitting the brakes. Fuck, too fast!

She’s going to go off the cliff at this rate so — what the hell.

As she starts to skid, she hits the gas instead.  She hits the edge of the cliff, lifting up her front wheel at the same time, and sails over the top.  The ground is so far, dammit — But the snow might cushion her fall.

She hits a few buttons to increase her thrust for just a brief moment — thank god Yugo had begged her to add the extra thrusters because it “looked cool.”  It might just give her enough lift to hit the ground right.

She hits the ground back wheel first and then the front wheel.  The impact shakes her all the way up to the top of her head, but she was right — the snow was just deep enough to cushion her, but not enough to stop her.  She spins out a few times, and then skids to a stop sideways.

For a moment, she just sits there, gasping for breath.  The impact still rattles through her like a constant vibration, while her D-Wheel hums beneath her.  Fuck. She’s going to have to make sure the damn thing isn’t broken beyond repair from that. The suspension is probably shot.

Her brain rattles with a million other thoughts to stop her from thinking about how she probably could have died from that.  She’s just about to send herself on a quick journey into her internal blueprints for the D-Wheel when a small gasping sound breaks through the roar of her heart in her ears, and she looks up.

Her eyes meet his, and for a second, her brain chugs to a stop.

He’s — he can’t be  _ right here _ .  There’s no way.  She yanks her helmet from her head and tosses it to the ground, thinking maybe her visor is fogged or something.  But no, her vision doesn’t change, she’s still staring right at him, at his face, at  _ Yugo’s _ face — 

He opens his mouth, but she’s already leaped off her bike and bolted across the ice towards him.

“You — ” she yells, “ —  _ IDIOT!!” _

His eyes bulge, but he’s not fast enough to dodge her when she knees him in the stomach.  He gasps, doubling over, and she catches him by the shoulders and shakes him, her eyes blurring with tears.

“Where have you been??  What are you doing just wandering around out here???  Why haven’t you tried to contact me?? Hey!! Look at me!!”

He wobbles in her grip, clutching at his stomach.  His eyes are wide and surprised, and his mouth just hangs open.

“Hey!” Rin says, shaking him again.  “Are you in there? Yugo, don’t just stare at me!!”

Oh, shit, she’s starting to blubber like a baby, and it’s hard to see his face through the bubble of tears in her eyes.  She lets go of him to start rubbing at her eyes with the heels of her palms.

“I was so worried, you big dummy!” she says.

He gasps softly again, getting his air back.

“I — I’m sorry,” he gasps, and there’s something different about his voice that makes her breath catch and she drops her hands from her eyes.  He bites his lip in a very not-Yugo-like fashion. “I...I’m sorry, but I...ugh. I think you got the wrong person.”

He hugs at his probably aching stomach, and Rin stares at him.

Then her eyes widen.  Oh. Uh. Fuck. 

Yeah, this isn’t Yugo.  And she just kneed him in the stomach.  Um. Oops.

* * *

The sun has set pretty much completely, and Yuzu can hardly see where she’s going.

A moment later, some ambient lights flicker on.  Oh. The street lamps are still working? That’s weird.  She shakes her head, pushing her bangs from her sweaty forehead.  She’s made it through the lava field and out into the ancient ruins, but she hasn’t quite cooled off from the lava yet.  She needs to find Yuya. Where would he have gone? He’s not responding to her messages anymore, and she lost sight of Yuuri, so there’s no help there.  She hasn’t even met any other duelists in the tournament for a while...her skin crawls, nervous about what that might mean.

_ Yuya’s fine _ , she reminds herself.   _ He’s okay.  Stop worrying. _

She checks her Duel Disk for the fortieth time for messages.  Nothing. No one is responding to her — neither Yuya nor Gongenzaka are picking up her texts.  They don’t even appear to have been opened yet. Geez.

She lets her arm fall back to her side and starts to clamber up the crumbling stairs of the nearest building.  Maybe if she gets some height she can figure out where she’s going, and what happened to the rest of the tournament.

A stone bounces down the stairs from up above.  She tenses. Who’s up there? Yuya? Or someone else?  She’s not ready to relax just yet, so she lowers her body, creeping up the stairs as quietly as she can.

As she nears the top, she can hear it — a duel is happening up above.  She hears the clang of metal against metal, booted feet crunching against a crumbly stone ground, the soft grunts of someone taking damage.  An attack rings out over head, and then there’s a brief pop of fire blooming at the top of stairs. She hears a yell, and a wind gusts down the stairs, sending up a rain of dust past her that she has to throw her arms over her eyes to protect against.

There’s definitely a duel up ahead — who is it??

She throws caution to the wind and charges up the stairs.  She skids to a stop against another gust of wind and dust once she reaches the top.

“Ancient Gear Hound, finish them off!” 

The voice is harsh and malicious, and it makes Yuzu’s skin crawl.  She drops her hands from her eyes, and as her vision adjusts to the evening dark, a huge metal dog lunges forward at a boy in a set of armor.  The boy yells, but Yuzu doesn’t hear the words before the metal dog strikes him in the chest. The boy goes down, two other boys in the same armored uniform falling beside him.  Yuzu takes a step forward, lifting her disk — but she doesn’t have a chance to join the fight. A blast of fire rushes over her, briefly blinding her. She hears someone cry out.

When her vision readjusts to the dark, she can see the armored duelists’ opponents — a trio of blue-suited, masked duelists.  They have awful, malicious grins, and almost in synch, all three of them raise their disks. One of the armored duelists cries out.  None of them even have a chance to get up.

A brilliant flash of violet light encases them, and before Yuzu can even blink, the three of them are gone.

In their place are three cards, drifting to the ground.  Yuzu’s breath sticks in her throat, and she chokes on the air in her lungs.  She wobbles one step forward, until she can see the face of the cards. They look like Duel Monsters cards.

But instead of card art, there is only the tortured, panicked faces of the three boys who had been there a moment ago.  Yuzu’s stomach lurches. She feels like she’s about to throw up, and she claps a hand over her mouth.

“Oh?  Someone else showed up,” one of the three duelists says, smirking at her.  “Maybe you’ll be a little more fun than those three.”

Her eyes shoot to the three of them.  Her hands shake. Her throat is dry. For just a moment, she thinks she’s panicking.

It takes her a moment to realize she’s not.

She’s  _ angry. _

They just...why?  Why had they done that?  Duels weren’t supposed to be for this!  And why were they  _ smiling _ about it?  Those boys had been so terrified!

“How  _ dare _ you,” rips out of her lips, almost as though they aren’t her own words.  Her pendulum feels suddenly incredibly hot against her chest. She takes a step towards them.  “How dare you!!”

One of them only laughs.

“Looks like we’ve got a feisty one,” he says.

“If you’re so angry about it, show us with your dueling,” the other says.

Yuzu’s head spins, but she doesn’t skip a beat.  She turns her Disk on and draws her hand. The other three are already ready, though, and one of them beats her to the punch.

“I’ll go first,” he says.  “I summon Ancient Gear Hunting Hound!”

The same metal dog from before appears at his side, creaking and growling.

“When Ancient Gear Hunting Hound is summoned, I deal my opponent six hundred points of damage!”

Yuzu swears, throwing her eyes around for an Action Card.  There! She dives for it.

The dog opens its mouth and a gun barrel protrudes from inside.  Fire explodes from the dog’s mouth — her fingers are inches from an Action Card!

She’s not quick enough.  She cries out as the fire rolls over her, sending her flying backwards — right towards the stairs.

For a second, panic blinds her.   She’s going to fall backwards down the stairs!

An arm catches against her back, shoving her back onto her feet before she can even strike the ground.  The whip of an open jacket smacks against her side as someone surges to her side, grabbing her arm next to haul her forwards and away from the stairs.

It takes Yuzu a second to get her head back on her shoulders, shaking herself back to coherency.

“ _ Intrusion Penalty.” _

The hand on her arm flinches from the brief spark of static, and then releases her.  Yuzu’s eyes clear, and she finally has a grasp on who’s just rescued her.

Ruri flings her hair back over her back and sets her feet.  Her eyes are only for the trio of duelists before them, hard and flinty and full of so much dark rage that for a moment it takes the breath out of Yuzu’s lungs.

“Stay on your feet,” Ruri orders her.  “They won’t hesitate — and neither should you.”


	44. R U R I / R I N

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!! I'm finally back to work on this one. Thank you so much for your patience. I may have to ask for your patience again in the future, as I have just started grad school and this is often a difficult fic for me to work on what with all of the duels that need to be plotted out. My school work will definitely be taking priority, and I thank you guys for your understanding.
> 
> As for the Card of the Day feature, I haven't had much time to work on designing them, so they will not appear every chapter anymore. They'll show up whenever I have the time or energy to work on a card.
> 
> Thank you guys again for supporting this work and for having patience when I have periods where I can't work on it. I hope to stay on schedule for now, and I will do my best. Thank you again and I hope you'll enjoy this next chapter <3

_Alpha tests concluded.  The phasing glitch seems to have gradually resolved itself with no further tweaking.  We have received permission to roll RSV out on a beta test with a larger test group. RSV will be implemented into this year’s Domino League Tournament for a test basis._

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 14, Entry 1.



* * *

 

Yuzu lurches back to her feet, and Ruri slides her stance a little lower.  The three Obelisk Force soldiers are taken aback by her appearance — she notes the way each of them freezes, how one of their mouths drops open, how another looks back and forth between her and Yuzu briefly, most likely noting their resemblance.  They’ve dropped their guard.

It’s their first mistake.

“My turn!” she yells.  “I have no monsters, so I can special summon Turquoise Warbler from my hand!”

She throws the card onto her disk, and one of her birds flutters onto the field, sending up a happy chirp.

“And now that I have a Winged Beast  monster, I can special summon the two Sapphire Swallows in my hand as well!” Ruri said, flicking the cards out of her hand.  “And when Sapphire Swallow is special summoned, I can special summon one more level one Winged Beast! So come out, both of my Cobalt Sparrows!”

In a flash and a rush of wings, her entire field is filled.  She hears one of the Obelisk Force swear, but she’s not stopping yet.

“For each Cobalt Sparrow I special summoned, I can add a Winged Beast from my deck to my hand,” she says, selecting the two from her deck and sliding them free.  

“And what do you think you’re going to do with all of that cannon fodder?” one of them laughs.

Yuzu sucks in a breath, and when Ruri shoots her a look, she can see that look of recognition in Yuzu’s eyes.  Yuzu knows exactly what’s coming next. Ruri turns her gaze back to her opponents. The world goes quiet in her ears, like it did during the hardest parts of the invasion — it’s like her brain detaches from her body, pulling her away from everything except for the quiet hum of conviction.  She stretches one hand out, signaling her birds.

“I overlay my five level ones to create the overlay network!” she calls.  “Birds with beautiful wings! Gather on the battlefield and take brilliant flight!  XYZ summon!”

All five birds swirl up into the air, leaving behind a whirlwind of feathers that makes Yuzu and the Obelisk Force throw their hands over their heads.  The birds turn to stars, falling into the swirling yellow portal over their heads.

“Dance in the sky!” Ruri shouts.  She feels a thrum under her skin, a vibration in the base of her ribcage, as she hears the first strains of song leave the portal before the being inside does.  “Lyrical Luscinia - Assembled Nightingale!”

Her brilliant partner descends from the portal, alighting with all of the grace of a ballerina at Ruri’s side.  The feather-wreathed being tilts their head up and lets out a beautiful, trilling sound. Something like peace settles over Ruri’s soul, and she returns to herself, inhaling the sharp, cool, dusty air with a snap.

“I activate the effect of Aquamarine Babbler in my hand,” she says, revealing the card. “By discarding it to the Graveyard, I can add a winged beast spell or trap from my deck to my hand!  I’ll select this card and set it!”

She ends her turn as her reverse card shines onto the field before fading from view.

“Some turn,” one of the soldiers laughs.  “You wasted pretty much your entire hand on a monster with one thousand attack?”

Ruri does not deign this with a response.  She simply steels her gaze and bites back her tremble at the lazy smirk on the boy’s face.

“My —” he starts.

“Not so fast!  It’s my turn!”

_“Intrusion Penalty.  Two thousand life points.”_

Yuzu yelps and spins, and Ruri’s heart slows even more as a relieved smile breaks out over her face.  She had almost thought those two had fallen behind.

Sure enough, however, a red-faced and puffing Hokuto surges to the top of the stairs, skidding to a stop between Ruri and Yuzu.  He hesitates for just a moment, eyes flicking between the two of them, and then shrugs, eyes flicking towards their opponents instead.  A smug, eager smile breaks over his expression.

“I summon Constellar Pollux!” he shouts, as one of his shining, starry warriors ascends to the field with a grunt.  “Pollux lets me have an extra normal summon once per turn! I summon Constellar Kaus!”

A second white, starry knight appears with a huff and a swoosh as it pulls an arrow to its bow.  Hokuto signals to his monster with a grin.

“Twice per turn, Kaus can increase the levels of one of my monsters,” he said.  “I’m increasing Kaus’s and Pollux’s levels by one each!”

Kaus lifts its bow towards the air, firing off two quick shots.  The arrows surge up, and then cascade back down onto the heads of each Constellar, turning into a rain of stars that scatters over their backs.

“And now I can construct the overlay network,” Hokuto says with an even bigger grin.

One of the Obelisk swears and spits.

“Another fucking XYZ scum,” he said.  “You’d think you’d learn by now how _useless_ your struggles are.”

“Shut up!” Ruri snaps back at him, rage rushing through her chest.  “No more! You will have no more lives!!”

This takes Hokuto aback, as his grin shifts and he shoots Ruri a sort of concerned sidelong glance.  He shakes himself out of it, though, turning back to his normal smugness.

“Light of the stars, descend and shake this very earth!” he calls out as the portal forms, and his monsters become stars to fall into the center.  “XYZ Summon! Rank 5 — Constellar Pleiades!”

The already darkening sky turns bright with a scattering of stars that flood the field.  From the portal, Hokuto’s shining white knight descends to the grounding, landing with a metallic thunk as it readies its weapon.

“Pleiades’ effect activates!  I can detach one XYZ unit to send one monster on the field back to your hand!  So bye-bye, doggie!”

Pleiades slashes its curved weapon in front of it, and a flash of starlight shoots across the field.  The Obelisk’s dog howls with surprise, jumping back — then it turns into a dog-shaped constellation, and disappears.  The card reappears in the Obelisk’s hand, and he scowls.

“Pleiades attacks you directly!” Hokuto shouts.  “Show ‘em what you’ve got, Pleiades!”

He points to the one farthest to the left of the group, who doesn’t have any monster out yet at all, and the boy’s jaw clenches.  Pleiades surges forward, slashing its weapon in front of the Obelisk and making the boy stumble back, almost losing his footing.

“I set a card and end my turn!” Hokuto says as Pleiades returns to him.  “Show me what you’ve got, newbies!”

Ruri can’t help but let out a small, exasperated smile at Hokuto’s smugness.  He has no idea, of course, what they’re up against, she hadn’t had a real chance to explain — but his confidence is still reassuring.

“My turn!” the second Obelisk shouts.  “I summon Ancient Gear Hunting Hound! You’ll all take six hundred damage!”

Ruri tenses.  She doesn’t have a way to dodge this —

Yuzu bolts.  Ruri flinches at the speed of Yuzu’s movement, as the girl flashes past her so fast that it makes Ruri’s hair fly up with the breeze.  Yuzu speeds across the field, perilously close to one of the Obelisk Force, who jumps with a bit of surprise. Yuzu dives, then, her hands reaching out across the pockmarked cobblestone.  

Oh, no, she’s rolling towards the edge!!

Assembled Nightingale reacts in an instant, as though to Ruri’s sudden panic.  With a shriek, Nightingale shoots forward, claws outstretched. Inches before Yuzu would have rolled straight off the side, Nightingale snags her by the shoulders, yanking her back from her fall.

Yuzu doesn’t even look winded or shocked when Nightingale shoots a few feet into the air to pull Yuzu back to safe ground.  She just immediately moves her hand out to her Duel Disk, slapping a card into the spell slot.

“Action Card!” she shouts.  “Acceleration! I negate your effect damage!!”

A faint speed blur over takes her and Ruri’s own vision just as the hunting hound opens its maw to let out a blast of fire.  The fire rolls wide, missing all of them. Yuzu drops back down to her feet, shooting a smile up at Nightingale, and then across to Ruri.  Ruri was wrong, she does look winded. Her cheeks are flushed and her chest heaving for breath. Ruri sends her a nervous, relieved smile back.  So _that’s_ what she was doing.  Action Cards. Ruri hadn’t even thought about it.

“Tch,” the Obelisk spits.  “You survived for just a minute.  I activate Polymerization!”

Ruri has to bite back a scream as she sees the roil of twisting magic appear behind the Obelisk Force, flinching at the sight of him bringing his hands together in that position that spelled the end for so many of her fellows.

“I fuse the Hunting Hound on my field with the one in my hand to summon Double Ancient Gear Hunting Hound!” he shouts.  “Come forth and rend your enemies to shreds!”

The magic twists and warps around the Hunting Hound on the field, and in a moment, a second head sprouts from its shoulders, metal jaws slavering and creaking.

“I activate the spell card Ancient Gear Assembly Line from my hand,” he shouts next.  “When I fusion summon an Ancient Gear monster, I can put a Gear counter on every monster on my opponent’s field!”

A thick, circular gear appears on Nightingale’s chest, and Ruri tenses with nerves.  What does that do?

“You’ll have to do better than that!” Hokuto shouts.  “My monster is still stronger than yours!”

“I can at least get rid of one eyesore,” the soldier sneers.  “Double Hunting Hound, attack Assembled Nightingale!”

“I activate Nightingale’s effect!  By detaching one XYZ unit, she’s not destroyed by battle or card effects this turn!” Ruri shouts.

Nightingale lets out a trilling cry, and one star pops in front of her as she crosses her wings before her, blocking the strike of the pouncing dog.

“But you’ll still take the damage!”

Ruri bites back a cry as the leftover damage passes through her like a shockwave.  Nightingale looks over her shoulder with concern, and Ruri sends her partner a reassuring smile.  She’s fine. She’s taken worse hits.

The hunting hound returns to its master’s side, and the Obelisk spits on the ground, sneering.

“You won’t last much longer,” he said. “I set a card.”

“My turn!” the third one starts.

_“Intrusion Penalty, two thousand life points.”_

A very high pitched little shriek accompanies the crackling sound of the intrusion penalty.  Ruri and Yuzu both spin around with surprise, but Hokuto only rolls his eyes.

“Took you long enough,” he says.

Oh, Ruri thinks, her eyes widening.  She’d almost forgotten about the other boy with Hokuto — they’d pretty much lost him in their speed.

The boy huffs to the top of the stairs, red faced and panting.  He has to stop to rest his hands on his knees for a second, gasping to get enough air to speak.

“I can’t — let you guys — be the only cool ones,” he grumbles.  “My turn!”

It takes him another second before he can breathe well enough to draw a card.  He pulls out his card, glances at it, and nods.

“I summon Abyss Soldier!” he calls, slapping a card onto his disk.

A huge man with a whale’s head surges up out of the ground with the brief appearance of waves rolling out from its wake.

“Then I activate Big Wave Small Wave,” Teppei says.  “By destroying a water monster on the field, I can special summon one from my hand!  I’ll special summon the Legendary Fisherman!”

A huge wave crashes over the whale soldier’s head, and when it rushes off again, a new monster breaches out of the water — a tall, muscled man on top of a monstrous killer whale.

“But that’s not all!” Teppei said, clearly getting his wind back enough to look smug.  “I’m going to evolve the Legendary Fisherman into level three!”

He throws another card onto his disk, and the Legendary Fisherman lets out a loud roar.  He gets even bigger, and his whale shrieks as a huge red gem protrudes from its forehead.

“Because of Ancient Gear Assembly Line, your summoned monsters gain one gear counter!” one Obelisk shouts.

A gear appears on the giant whale’s head, and it hisses.

“Who cares? When Legendary Fisherman III is summoned, I can banish all of my opponent’s monsters,” Teppei says.  “So I’ll banish your fusion monster!”

The Obelisk swears.  The fisherman surges towards the dog, but before it can even react, it snatches it up in its net, dragging it back with it.

“Once per turn, too, I can return all of your banished monsters to the graveyard, and after that, the next battle or effect damage you’ll take will be doubled!” Teppei says

Hokuto lets out a whistle, grinning.

“Not bad,” he says. “And I thought you were a mistaken entry.”

“Hey, don’t patronize me!” Teppei shouts at him.

Hokuto just grins, and presses a button on his disk.

“I activate Constellar Formation! Once per turn, I can banish your monsters by detaching an XYZ unit from one of my Constellar monsters — and for every monster that’s banished whether it’s from this effect or not, you take five hundred damage!”

He shoots Teppei a smug grin, who shoots one back.

“I told you that we were a good team!” Teppei says.

“Took you long enough to prove you had talent,” Hokuto snarks back.

“Can you guys save this for later??” Yuzu says.

Hokuto waves a dismissive hand, shooting her a smug grin too.  Yuzu just rolls her eyes and groans. She still looks a little pale, and Ruri can understand — Yuzu might be the only other person here who knows what the stakes are.  

But Hokuto and Teppei have set up a great combo!  They can keep banishing their opponent’s monsters!  They might just be able to win this without any problems!

Her relief dissipates in an instant as she sees the grin on Obelisk Force’s face.  She starts to turn towards Hokuto and Teppei, her eyes wide. She’s not even sure what she’s going to do — what she’s going to say, if she can say anything at all.  For a moment, the whole world simply goes quiet. It’s like that awful lull right after the whistle of a rocket, right before it explodes at her feet.

“It’s my turn!” the Obelisk shouts.  “I activate Polymerization!”

Ruri feels something constrict against her throat.  She can’t breathe.

“I fuse the two Ancient Gear Hunting Hounds in my hand to fusion summon Ancient Gear Howitzer!”

Metal crackles and shrieks as a monster that looks like a malnourished metal dragon staggers free of the swirling magic, stretching its wings with an awful creaking.

“Not so fast!  I’m activating Constellar Formation!” Hokuto shouts.  “I can detach one XYZ unit from Pleiades to banish your monster!”

 _It’s not going to work,_ Ruri thinks with her throat going dry.

“Howitzer isn’t effected by other card’s effects!” the Obelisk Force says with a nasty grin.

Hokuto swears, but his XYZ unit has already popped in a useless sparkle.

“And then I activate my trap card!” the second Obelisk shouts.  “Ancient Gear Malfunction!”

The card flips up, and Ruri’s mind fills up with the sounds of explosions and screams and the scent of burning buildings and smoking bombs.

“Every monster with a Gear Counter on the field is destroyed!  And each controller will take damage equal to the attacks of your monsters that were destroyed!”

Hokuto’s eyes bulge.  Yuzu swears. Teppei lets out a little shriek.

 _Oh god_ , Ruri thinks, feeling like she’s not inside her own body.   _I can’t do anything_.

The gear counters on each monster start to spin wildly, sending up heavy rains of sparks.  Nightingale screams. It’s only that sound that brings Ruri back to herself enough to react.

“I-I detach one XYZ unit to prevent Nightingale from being destroyed this turn!”

A second XYZ unit disappears, raining sparkles over Nightingale.  The gear explodes, but Nightingale remains, her attack dropping down to just six hundred.

But she can’t do anything to save the others.

Yuzu throws her hands over her face as Pleiades explodes first, sending a rain of sharp sparks down over her head.  The explosion throws Hokuto back — he manages to catch himself before he falls down the stairs, but then he collapses to one knee.  Teppei lets out a shriek and bounces off to the side from the explosion of his Legendary Fisherman.

“Hokuto-kun!  Tairyobata-san!” Ruri screams.

“Leave them alone!” Yuzu yells.

Their life points — their at zero.  The intrusion penalty!! Their monsters were both stronger than two thousand attack points and it took that much damage from them!  Yuzu, the only one without a monster, is the only one standing. Her eyes are wide and her mouth hanging open with shock and horror.  The Obelisk Force are all grinning, their faces contorted with malice, as one of them lifts their arm and pushes a button, as the violet light spills out from the disk, falling over Hokuto’s shocked, face, Teppei’s big eyes.

Oh god.  

No.  No, no, no, no.  No, she can’t — she can’t watch them — she has to do something —

The cards flutter silently down to the ground.  Ruri can only watch. She can only stare, her mind a cacophony of muted screams, the image of Hokuto’s face on the card seared into her eyes.  Hokuto, the smug, argumentative student who had no idea what she was dragging him into. Who came along with her because he considered her a friend.  She — she did this. She brought him here. She knew that he might — that she was bringing him into this —

Ruri as good as just killed them both.

A scream rings out over the field.  Ruri thinks its hers, at first. It takes her a moment to realize that Yuzu is the one screaming.

And one blink later, Yuzu’s scream is hers, too.

* * *

“Okay, so lemme get this all straight,” Rin says.  “So there’s a dimension full of people who use Fusion, and they’re the bad guys.”

“So far, that’s what it looks like.”

It’s so weird being in front of this kid who looks so much like Yugo, seeing him talk with Yugo’s mouth and Yugo’s lips and Yugo’s eyes, but he’s not Yugo.  He wears his hair loose and shaggy, unlike Yugo’s tightly swooped hair so that he can fit it under a helmet better. And his expressions are slightly more reserved than Yugo’s — she can _always_ tell what Yugo’s thinking in a heartbeat, but this kid is a little more weird to try and read.

She rubs her temples, biting her lip.

“And they’re all after guys that look like you?” she says.  “That’s what Yugo was taken?”

“That must be,” Yuya says.  “I was running from someone from Academia who looked like you.”

That must have been the bitch she saw — or at least, one of the bitches she saw.  She’s seen three of them now, girls that look like her. Girls who look like her, all looking for boys that look like Yugo.  But why?

That’s just a little too much to process right now so she files it away for later, honing in on the more important information.

“But what you’re saying is that if I just follow these fusion guys, I could find Yugo,” she says.

“That would make sense to me,” Yuya says.  “I think another boy got kidnapped already, too.  Someone named Yuto.”

Rin’s lips part, nodding.  That other girl, the one who was talking about how Rin stole someone important from her, too.  She must be the one looking for Yuto.

“Well, good!  I need to find that stupid head before he gets himself into more trouble!” she says, stomping her feet.  “How do we get there??”

Yuya looks uncertain at this, biting his lip.

“You don’t know?” she says.

“No,” he says.  “I have no idea how to get to another dimension.  But...”

Rin feels herself perk up, but cautiously.  No good getting her hopes up too high.

“But?” she prompts.

“Akaba Reiji,” Yuya says.  She has no idea about that name, but she lets him keep talking.  “He probably knows something more. I think he’s trying to fight against the fusion dimension.  If we ask him...”

“Then let’s go!!” Rin says, grabbing his wrist.  “Tell me how to find him!”

“Gah!  Wait!” Yuya gasps, tugging himself free before she can drag him over to her D-Wheel.  “We have to be careful! There are a bunch of Obelisk Force around here!”

“Whatever, I’ll just bowl ‘em all down like I always do.  Just start telling me directions to get to this Akaba guy!”

She grabs him by the arm again, pulling him over to the D-Wheel, this time not letting him squirm away.  She only lets him go to right her D-Wheel, pushing it back up onto its wheels.

“What is that?” Yuya asks, frowning.

Rin whips her head around towards him, eyes wide.

“You’ve never seen a _D-Wheel_ before?” she said.

“A what?”

Rin opens her mouth, but she forgets whatever she was going to say when she hears someone cry out.  The sound echoes and bounces off the ice over their heads, coming from somewhere at the top of the ice cliff.  Yuya’s head jerks up towards it, eyes wide. Rin swears. Over the top of the ice cliff, she sees a brief flash of purple light.  Someone shouts, but she can’t hear the words. A flash and swirl of fire goes up into the sky for a moment.

Rin grabs Yuya by the arm and hauls him onto her bike behind her, yanking his arms around her waist so he doesn’t fall off like a dumbass.  He flinches and almost lets go, but then she jams her helmet on her head and revs the engine, pealing off so fast that he nearly falls off. He tightens his grip after that, head pressing against her back with a yelp.  For just a second, it feels like it did with Yugo the first time they rode their D-Wheel. The first time when Yugo didn’t know what he was doing, and he almost fell off behind her.

Nostalgia breaks up in seconds as she tears through it with her D-Wheel, taking the long way around the cliff and up a slope to get to the top.  She sees another burst of flame as they crest the hill, and Yuya peeks his head up over her shoulder. He hears his sharp intake of breath, and as she slams her brakes to careen to a stop before she runs over the duelists, her breath catches too.

They’re too late, she realizes all at once, with ice in her throat.  All she has time to see is the horrified look on the younger, dark-skinned boy’s face, his mouth hanging open and eyes widening as a flash of purple light overtakes him.

In his place, a slip of paper falls to the ground.  A card, fluttering to the icy ground next to a second card.  Yuya chokes.

Rin’s heart stops.  This is the first time she’s seen it up close — people getting turned into cards.  Oh fuck. That’s horrifying. That’s _real_.

And her D-Wheel was way too loud to avoid notice, because the perpetrators of the horror are all looking at her now.  She tightens her grip on her handlebars. Two of the blue suited kids look at each other, shrugging, and a third points at Rin.  Rin revs her bike. Fuck. They need to get out of here. She could take ‘em, but if Yuya’s right, and they’re after boys that look like him....

Well, she might not know Yuya, but she’ll be damned if she’s going to lose her chance to find Yugo — or let these kidnapping bastards take anyone else from their homes and families.

Or so she thinks before Yuya scrambles off the back, bolting towards them.

“Are you fucking stupid?” Rin shouts after him.

The blue suited guys seem to think the same, as they all draw up with surprise at Yuya’s sudden bolt towards them.  Rin hits the gas, shooting after Yuya.

Yuya alters his course at the last second, ducking and scooping — the cards.  He went after the fallen cards. Rin catches up to him a second later, snatching him up under the arms and flinging him face first over the D-Wheel’s seat.  He clutches there, eyes wide and face pale, as Rin shoots off.

“Are you stupid?” she shouts at him.  “What were you thinking??”

She hits the gas harder, one hand on Yuya’s back to prevent him from flying off, but he doesn’t let go of the cards despite the sharp wind.  He’s either too rattled or clinging onto the bike too desperately to respond to her. Not that she’s really expecting an answer. In fact, really all she can think about when she remembers the look of him bolting for those cards is just how like Yugo that stunt was.  Yugo would have done that too — he would have thrown himself into harm’s way to collect those cards, to protect them from whatever the enemy planned to do with them. Yugo is pure like that, too. It’s so like him that it hurts, and Rin has to bite down on her lip to stop herself from bursting into tears right then.

The scenery starts to change — buildings made of warm stone start to poke out through the ice, slowly changing from a barren ice wasteland into what looks like an ancient, crumbling city.  She’s about to glance over her shoulder to see if those guys are still following them when she hears Yuya let out a little gasp.

Then there’s a popping sound in her ears as a warm red light encases them, and all at once, the world around them is gone.


	45. O B E L I S K / Y U U R I / ?????

_ Beta test results have returned positive.  Duelists expressed great excitement and reported no glitches or processing errors.  Audience attendance was at a record high and surveys of the new RSV rated the experience overwhelmingly high.  One beta tester has expressed concerns about the potential lethality of RSV. Before beta testing can conclude, we will be programming in safety locks to prevent this possibility. _

  * Solid Vision Project, Program Code Number 83B, Head Researcher’s Notes.  Journal 14, Entry 53.



* * *

Now, Jackson isn’t the type to get spooked.  He wouldn’t be wearing his fresh new Obelisk uniform if he was, and he takes pride in that.  He’s the top of the top, the leader of his squad, having fought tooth and nail, friend and foe, to make it to where he is now.  He was once congratulated by the Professor himself on his prowess on the field in Heartland. He’s never flinched at anything.

But when he hears the unnatural scream that rips out of both girls’ throats, the tone of their voices somehow mixing together as though only a single person is screaming in stereo, he does feel the slightest hint of unease.  He does, slightly, move one heel back when the girls suddenly stop screaming. When they both slump forwards, still standing with their shoulders and heads flopped forward like they were puppets who just got their strings cut.

“What’s the matter?” Emery yells at them from beside Jackson, a taught in his voice.  “You giving up the ghost already?”

Millard laughs on the other side of Jackson, and Jackson doesn’t let his own lazy smile slip, but he wonders if the other two are feeling it.  That...pressure, that’s all of a sudden crunching down on his head. Do either of them notice the strange way that the XYZ girl’s monster is suddenly convulsing on the field?

And then both girls’ heads snap up at the same time, every single smile on Jackson’s and the other’s faces slip off, and two pairs of fiery,  _ glowing _ eyes bear into them.

The exact same smile breaks over both girls’ faces in tandem — with their already overwhelmingly similar looks, it’s even more terrifying than it was to start.  It’s...it’s not a happy smile. What the hell is going on? Their opponents aren’t supposed to be the ones smiling and laughing. Not when they just saw their comrades get carded in front of them.  They’re supposed to scream and cry, maybe run away.

They’re not supposed to smile at them like they’re about to eat them alive.

“My turn,” they say at the same time, but only the pink haired girl draws.  “With the scale three Strozzi, the Melodious Songsmith and the scale six Allegro, the Melodious Minstrel, I set the Pendulum Scale.”

The pink haired girl places two cards onto her disk, and the disk spells out Pendulum in rainbow letters.  Jackson gapes — what the hell is this supposed to be? Two pillars rise up into the air on either side of her, a floating monster clad in flowing robes in each one.

“I can now simultaneously summon monsters of level four and five,” the girls continue.  What the hell? “I summon Aria and Opera, the Melodious Divas.”

Both girls raise their hands to the sky as though they’re connected by the same string.  Overhead, the darkening sky bright alights with a web of stars. The center of the web opens up, and two rays of light shoot down before the pink haired girl.  The light condenses into the shape of two women in opera dresses and masks. Jackson swears, and he hears Emery suck in a breath.

“Two monsters at once?” Millard swears.

“When a monster is special summoned to the field,” both girls echo.  “I can special summon Lyrical Luscinia - Lapis Laughingthrush from my hand.”

Both girls make the same motion, but only the dark haired girl draws a card from her hand, slapping a card onto her disk.  Another one of those tiny bird girls appears beside the other taller bird woman.

“And then I activate Laughingthrush’s effect,” they both say at once.  “By tributing it, I can make one XYZ monster on my field gain a level equal to its rank.”

Laughingthrush giggles, and swoops up, spinning around Assembled Nightingale.  It bursts into stars and feathers that rain down around Nightingale, and it rustles its feathers — is it just Jackson’s imagination, or is that bird monster staring right at them with murder in its eyes?  It’s just a hologram, right?

On his duel screen, he watches as Assembled Nightingale’s rank star turns orange, changing into a level.

“You’re making an XYZ monster have  _ levels _ ?” Emery says incredulously.

“Next, I tribute my two Melodious monsters,” they say.  “From my hand, I tribute summon Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight!”

Both opera girls grab each other’s hands, spinning in a circle before bursting into a ray of sparkles — the sparkles swirl up into a twister, and when the twister fades, a new, taller woman appears, with a wide brimmed hat and a rapier strapped to her belt.

“Strozzi’s Pendulum effect activates!”

“Pendulum effect?”Jackson blurts in spite of himself.

“Once per turn, I can target one monster on the field and make its level the same as a Melodious on my side of the field!”

Their echoing, stereo voices are really starting to throw him off now, and it’s taking everything he has, all of his training, not to let it show.  Their eyes are fucking  _ glowing _ !  And how are they managing to move and talk in perfect synch like that?  Are they  _ possessed _ ?

Millard swears, then, and Jackson snaps back to himself as he watches Assembled Nightingale’s level become the same as Bloom Bard’s.  Oh, shit, he knows what’s coming next.

“You’re stupid if you think that an XYZ monster will be strong enough to take us!”

“And you’re stupid if you thought you had a chance once I arrived,” both girls say at the same time, with that same, condescending smile on their faces.  “I overlay Bloom Bard and Assembled Nightingale!”

The two monsters leap up into the growing golden portal that sprouts over their heads, disappearing inside.  Both girls raise their arms up towards it.

“Knight of song and collector of lyrics, join your melodies together now into an overwhelming dirge,” they chant, their voices suddenly echoing as though there’s more than two voices speaking with them.  “XYZ summon! Rank Eight! Sing, Bloom Nightingale, Knight of Requiem!”

The monster descends in a furious rush of feathers and a haunting, cutting cry that stabs Jackson right in his heart.  The creature is tall, twice the size of the girls it stands before, a thin and gaunt woman with a beaked helmet that covers its pale face, long red hair that seems to be made of feathers spilling down its back and entangling with the black feather cloak that covers its shoulders.  Its white tunic beneath the cloak looks like bone, and there are skulls hanging from its belt — bird skulls, but also human ones. It carries a long, thin violin bow, so thin and sharp that it looks like it could cut through steel, and a bone white violin. When it touches down to the ground, white lilies sprout at its feet, and their vines spread up to take root in its cloak, scattering petals and blossoms all down its feathers.

A chill rushes over him, making his hair stand on end beneath the sleeves of his uniform, and for just one moment, he forgets all of his training.

For just one moment, he is terrified.

* * *

Yuuri hates letting this stranger help him, but he can’t walk just yet.  It looks like his ankle isn’t as bad as he thought, but he still limps, and it’s hard to stand — he has no choice but to let this Hikage guy support him.

The girl, Mieru, skitters back and forth in front of them, still clutching her crystal apple and looking worried.

“We need to move fast,” she says.  “I can sense that someone after Yuuri-san is very close!”

“They’re always close,” Yuuri says with a faint, manic giggle.  “Everyone wants me. I’m so popular.”

He giggles again, and Hikage shoots him a worried look.  That makes Yuuri giggle more. People worrying about him?  He doesn’t have the slightest clue what to do with  _ that _ .

Something explodes around a corner, and a rush of smoke floods out around the side of one of the ancient ruins.  Yuuri tenses, and Hikage freezes.

“Hochun-dono, take Yuuri-dono,” Hikage says.  

Mieru quickly grabs Yuuri’s arm to support him while Hikage slides forward, duel disk raised up.  Yuuri tries to figure out how he feels about someone protecting him. He can’t even quite comprehend it, honestly.  This girl, Mieru, has no idea who he is, and yet, she’s supporting him without complaining about his weight when he’s definitely awkward for her petite frame to hold up.  Hikage probably only is protecting him because Reiji wants him alive and all, but Mieru confuses him. He’s a stranger to her. What is she  _ doing  _ here?

_ Just like that other kid _ , he thinks.   _ Yuya, was it? _

Why had Yuya put himself in harm’s way for him?  Yuuri couldn’t  _ process _ it.  Why would someone try to protect someone they didn’t know?  What was the reason? What did they get out of it?

Another explosion rings out, and another column of smoke, and someone stumbles backwards around the corner.  In the dark, it’s hard to quite see him, but he’s tall, with swooped dark hair and a long dark cloak, almost hidden against the night sky.

He’s got his Duel Disk up, though, and the faint glow makes him visible.  His hazel-gold eyes flick suddenly to the three of them, and his lips part.

“Kurosaki-dono,” Hikage says.  “Who are you —”

Kurosaki, as he seems to be called — isn’t that who Yuya told him to find? —  flinches his eyes back to his opponent still around the corner. Gritting his teeth, he crosses his arms in front of him, to block the wild strike of something flashing and metal.  He stumbles back around the corner, putting himself between Hikage and his opponent.

His opponent is visible in a moment — a tiny boy, with poofy blue hair the shade of cotton candy.  He pops a sucker out of his mouth and grins.

“See?” he says.  “I told you it was a fluke.  You never could have beaten me.”

Yuuri freezes up, his throat catching.  Every sense he has tells him to flee. To get the hell out of there.  That’s an Academian soldier if he ever saw one, and he needs to  _ run _ .

When he tries to step backwards, however, falling out of Mieru’s grip, he lands on his ankle and falls.  A gasp rushes out of his lungs in spite of himself.

The sound makes Kurosaki look over his shoulder.  Kurosaki’s eyes widen, his lips part. He starts to form a word.

“Don’t ignore me!” the other boy says, his voice cracking with irritation.  “And the rest of you! Piss off! This is between him and me!”

Yuuri freezes.  Mieru screams at the sight of the massive, torn up tiger stuffed animal monster that lurches around the corner.  With a huge swipe of its paw, it knocks Hikage to the side and he crashes into a wall with a gasp. Mieru screams again, ducking down with her hands over her head.

The tiger’s paw lurches towards Kurosaki and Yuuri, the only two left in its path.

“This is the final blow!” the boy cries with a grin.  “Take that, Kurosaki!”

Kurosaki swears.  But instead of running, instead of dodging, instead of doing literally anything — 

Kurosaki whips around towards Yuuri, and throws himself on top of him.

Yuuri’s face presses into the man’s ragged coat as he throws his arms around Yuuri, shielding him.  Then the tiger’s paw hits, and they are airborne.

Kurosaki somehow manages to twist in midair, landing on his back with Yuuri still held tightly to him.  Yuuri’s breath rushes out of him. For a second, all he can do is lay there on top of his chest, eyes wide.  

Why — 

Why did he do that?

Kurosaki’s body wracks with a cough that catches and chokes him, and Yuuri shoves himself back up, off of him.  For another moment, all he can do is stare at him. Why did he do that? Why did this stranger just save him?

The sound of the other boy’s footsteps makes Yuuri’s head snap up, eyes widening.

The boy blinked at him, pulling at the sucker between his teeth.  He frowns at Yuuri.

“Move out of the way, Yuya,” the boy says.  “I’m going to card him.”

_ He —  _

_ Doesn’t know —  _

Yuuri’s eyes flicker down to the man on the ground.  Helpless. Weak. Academia will card him now, because he lost.  That’s what happens. Yuuri should take this opportunity to run, before the boy realizes his mistake.

He can’t.

Even if he could have stood up and run with any confidence, he...he can’t.

He turns on his Duel Disk.  The boy’s eyes widen as they seem to note the Academia make.

“Violet Flash,” Yuuri says, sliding the card into its spot.

A brilliant light encases the field, but he closes his eyes before it effects him.  While the boy stumbles back with a cry, he adds another card to his disk. He feels the vines of his monster gently grabbing hold of him, and Kurosaki, pulling them into the shadowy dark of the jungle beside them.

Why did he do that?

Yuuri doesn’t think he can say.

* * *

“I activate Bloom Nightingale’s effect.”

God, it feels good to be dueling again.  She can’t quite remember the last time she dueled.  Actually, she can’t quite remember the last time she did anything.  

But it’s exhilarating.  She missed this. Missed wiping the smug smiles off of her opponent’s faces.

“When Bloom Nightingale was summoned using an XYZ monster, it gains six hundred attack for every XYZ unit that was sent to the Graveyard,” she says.  “There were three XYZ units attached to Assembled Nightingale, so Bloom Nightingale’s attack raises by eighteen hundred!”

She smiles as Bloom Nightingale tucks its violin underneath its chin and plays one long, haunting note.  The spirits of the Lyrilusc sent to the graveyard appear as black and white specters, dancing around Bloom Nightingale with hollow, blank eyes, before each one falls silently inside the violin.  Bloom Nightingale’s attack raises up to forty three hundred. She lets out a breathy laugh at the sound of one of the boys swearing.

“And Bloom Nightingale’s base effect,” she calls out.  “I can detach one XYZ unit to let her attack twice.”

She grins, tilting her head.

“And it looks like two of you are sporting rather empty fields at the moment.”

She really loves the look on their faces, the way their mouths drop open and their cheeks go white.  She points at both of them at once, stretching out two arms towards them.

“Bloom Nightingale,” she says softly.  “Withering Dirge.”

Bloom Nightingale tucks its violin beneath its chin once again.  The cry that screams out from the violin lets out an actual shockwave, the air ripping and shrieking as the twister of sound splits around the middle duelist, striking the other two at once.  They go flying with very satisfying screams, landing hard a few feet back as their life points hit zero.

“Another beautiful performance,” she congratulates Bloom Nightingale.  “You really are stunning.”

Bloom Nightingale hums with pleasure, ruffling its feathery cloak.

There’s only one left.  She can’t do much with it for now.  Not her turn...or her other turn. Hm.  She has two turns. She’s not sure why.

“I end my turn,” she says.  “Try to make the ending a little bit of fun for me, at least.  Oh, and don’t forget, either...Bloom Nightingale’s other effect is that when I detach an XYZ unit, it’s not destroyed by card effects or battle until the end of your turn.”

She does enjoy the way that boy’s face goes bone white and pale.  They always think they’re stronger than they are. Or at least, stronger than her.  They’re always wrong.

His hand actually shakes when he reaches for his next card, pulling it free.  It’s hard to tell his expression beneath that mask covering his eyes, but she sees him tilt his head towards it.  Then he grins. She tenses — that’s not right. He shouldn’t be doing that.

“You XYZ scum really are all the same,” he spits.  “You think you’ve won just because you got a little lucky.  But you all fall just as easily as the rest.”

He slams a card into his disk with a very rude grin.

“I activate Ancient Gear Scrap Fusion!” he says.  “I can fusion summon by banishing monsters in my Graveyard, but my monster’s effects are negated — not that it matters.”

He sneers at her, and she scowls back.

“I’m using the Ancient Gear monsters in mine  _ and _ my comrade’s Graveyards,” he says.  “I fusion summon Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem!!”

The world pinches and swirls, and she tenses.  She’s more than familiar with Fusion, and the pressure doesn’t bother her.  But she lowers her stance when the huge, clanking monster steps through the portal — it’s like a centaur, made of metal and gears, creaking and blowing steam from its joints, so big that it barely fits on this stage.  The ground actually cracks and crumbles beneath it a bit, and her stance slips — she falls to her knees on one side, but keeps her feet on the other. 

A panicked explosion of memory stabs through her brain and she chokes — a memory of huge, hulking monsters like this one, crashing through buildings, their huge red eyes glowing through the smoke and darkness — bile rises up in her throat.  W-what is this? 

Nerves stab at her from one side — what did that image mean?  She doesn’t remember anything like that. Is that what happened to the XYZ dimension?

The what dimension?  What’s going on? Her brain is — it’s fragmenting.  She doesn’t know which thoughts are hers and which are...someone else’s?  Who...who is she?

She snaps back to herself, throwing the thoughts away.  She’s in a duel! This is  _ her _ duel!!  She will not be distracted until her enemies are wiped out.

“Only one hundred attack more than mine?” she says, rolling her eyes.  “You must be stupid if you think that’s enough. Bloom Nightingale can’t be destroyed by battle.”

“I don’t need to destroy it to take you both out,” he says with a smirk.  “I activate Limiter Removal!”

Both of his fusion monsters let out a hissing shriek of steam.  Metal falls off of them with a crash, cracking through the floor and making her fall to her butt in both sides now.  She winces with the pain that rattles through her from the impact.

“Limiter Removal doubles the attack of all of my machine type monsters,” he says.  “And even without effects, this will be more than enough to take you both out!”

The monsters shriek.  And a horrible anger courses through her.  She has two sets of life points — if that monster hits her Bloom Nightingale with eight thousand, eight hundred attack points, it will take out her first set, and the other one at two thousand will take out her other!  She’ll lose!! She will  _ not _ lose, not to this  _ lowlife _ !

“Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem!  Attack Bloom Nightingale!”

She has to think of something.  She will  _ not _ lose — 

_ Yuzu’s going to be carded _ .

She has to win!  If she lets them win, they’ll stop her!  They’ll — 

_ Oh god, no, Yuzu is — he’s going after Yuzu — she’ll — it will be my fault again —  _

Her head — it feels like it’s about to split — 

_ THEY WILL HAVE NO MORE LIVES!!!! _

Ruri screams.  She lurches to her feet, staggering upward, and striking at her Duel Disk.

“I activate my trap card!” she screams.  “Luscinia Final Refrain!”

Her card glows in front of her as a rush of golden feathers swirl about her shoulders.  Her head spins, and she can’t breathe — but she can do this. She can at least do this.

“When you declare an attack on a monster, I can change it to a direct attack, and then end the battle phase!” she cries.  “So you’ll be attacking only me instead!!”

The screaming, surging ray of light from the monster’s eye twists in midair, shooting towards Ruri instead.

For just a moment, the whole world goes quiet and still.  She watches the ray bear down on her in slow motion. Faces flare over her mind — Shun.  Sayaka. Allen. Kaito. Hokuto and Teppei. ...Yuto.

She closes her eyes.

_ I’m sorry. _

The light courses through her body all at once and the world flies back into real time.  She screams at the pain that cuts through her, her body going flying. She sort of registers hitting the stairs, something cracking, her body rolling down a few steps before she lands hard, face down, halfway down the stairs.

Distantly, a scream rings out.  The Obelisk’s laugh.

_ “RURI!” _

Ruri’s head buzzes.  Her mouth tastes like cotton.  What does it feel like to become a card?

“Ruri!!  Ruri, no!  No, no, no, I’m so — I didn’t — Ruri!”

Ruri gasps with pain at the arms that slide underneath her, turning her over and propping her up.  Her vision blurs, but she can recognize the eerie feeling of her doppelganger looking down at her. A tear falls on her cheek.  Yuzu is...Yuzu is crying. Ruri trembles slightly in her arms. It’s...it’s not fair, at all, is it? Duels were never supposed to be like this.  You aren’t supposed to cry during a duel. Winning, and losing, and all of it, it’s all supposed to be part of the fun. Not a part of the panic and the fear and the terror of dying looming over you.

She struggles to reach for Yuzu’s hand.  She’s...she’s not sure how Assembled Nightingale got there, but she can feel it buzzing in her palm.  Feel the pained hum of her precious monster, worrying about her. She doesn’t want Nightingale to become a card with her.  She presses it into Yuzu’s hand.

“Please,” she whispers.  “Please...Yuzu. Stop them from stealing everyone’s happiness.  Bring...bring back the smiles in dueling...please....”

She can’t stop crying.  Her vision blurs more.

“I will,” Yuzu sobs, her voice choking.  “I will, Ruri, I promise! I’ll bring everyone’s happiness back!  I’ll — I’ll save Yuto, I promise!”

Ruri smiles.  She’s...she’s fading out.  Maybe she’ll be dead before she becomes a card.  It’s hard to see. She clings to Yuzu’s hand as best she can.

“Thank you,” she whispers.

It’s all she has the energy left to say.  She wants to say so much more. That Yuzu is a sweet girl.  That she’s a strong one. That she definitely has the power to bring back happiness to her world, and to protect what she loves.  Ruri didn’t know her long, but she feels certain of that. 

Ruri’s not upset, she finds, smiling as she closes her eyes.  Somehow, leaving things in Yuzu’s hands feels good.

It feels right.


	46. S H U N / G O N G E N Z A K A / Y U Z U

_ Maiami City, Japan - Witness this generation’s greatest evolution in dueling history with the highly anticipated worldwide release of Real Solid Vision!  Developed by RSV Labs in conjunction with LDS, with head researcher Akaba Leo, Real Solid Vision grants solid mass to the wildly popular Duel Monsters game, bringing the dueling scene into a brand new era.  The official worldwide release will begin on —  _

  * Newspaper article taped to the inside of Solid Vision Project Journal 18



* * *

Shun groans, his tongue tasting dusty and thick in his mouth.  What...what happened? His body aches with random twinges of pain.  He feels rattled. Where is he? Why is it dark?

Something coils around his leg, and he swears, trying to kick it off.  Someone swears at him.

“Ungrateful,” says a voice that’s both familiar and not.  “After I just saved your  _ skin _ .”

The voice does sound like someone he’s heard before, but with more venom than it should have.  Shun cracks his eyes open finally, realizing that he hadn’t gotten them open yet.

He’s leaning against a tree.  It’s dark because they’re in the jungle again, and it looks like the sun’s set — perhaps it’s been set for a while.  But one way or another, there’s little but darkness peeking through the leaves of the tree.

A small shadow hovers near him, eyes catching the glint of stars.  In the dark, Shun can’t quite make out who it is. He squints. That face looks...familiar...

He breathes in sharply as all at once, it comes to him.  He remembers dueling Sora, a duel that dragged on for  _ hours _ as they pushed back and forth, unable to get the advantage over the other — up until the end, at least.  He remembers the appearance of one of Reiji’s ninja, and that fortune teller girl, as he was forced back.

And he remembers turning around and seeing Yuto staring at the battle with huge, terrified eyes.

He winces when he tries to move — something feels bruised in his chest, maybe his ribs, even.  He did take that last hit head on, after all. But...but what was he supposed to do, when that was...

His brain catches up with him again as he squints once more through the darkness.  The eyes look so familiar, the shape of the shadowed face. Even the hair, mussed and rumpled as it is, looks familiar.  But his body slowly slumps as he realizes — no. He’s wrong. It’s not Yuto. Yuto wouldn’t be making such a wary sort of expression at him.

Reiji and Ruri’s insistence that Yuto is still alive must have rattled him.  He’d been too quick to assume the boy looking at him and Sora with barely concealed terror was Yuto.  This isn’t Yuto after all.

“Can you walk?” the boy asks.

The question is sharp and pointed, and Shun grimaces.  Definitely not Yuto, after all. He was stupid to think so.  Reiji and Ruri insist that he’s alive, but...Shun knows better.  This must be Yuya again. Or perhaps that other one, the one that Reiji was hiding in LDS.  He’d mistaken a doppelganger for Yuto, and he’d gotten himself nearly killed for it.

He grunts as he pushes himself up against the tree.  He still feels that thing coiled around his leg, loose enough that it doesn’t hinder him, but tight enough that he knows it’s there.  He can’t see it in the dark, but irritated, he reaches to grab it. 

His hand flinches back from it instantly — what  _ is _ that?  It felt like...fuck, it felt like  _ flesh _ .

The thing slides off his leg and he presses back against the tree, pushing his feet underneath him as he stares at the shadow.  Is that a vine? Is it moving by itself? A minute later, however, it disappears under the underbrush.

The boy doesn’t seem concerned, just looking up at Shun with a glint in his eyes and a scowl that makes him look less like Yuto.

“Good, it seems you can,” he says.  “My plants were getting tired of dragging you.”

He bites down on his lip and tries to get one leg underneath him.  He immediately collapses. Shun doesn’t jump to help him, not right away.

“What happened?” he says.  “I remember getting that last hit.  What happened after that? How long have I been out?”

“An hour, perhaps?  No more than that,” the boy says.  “It’s hard to keep track of time in here.  But I digress. After you took that final blow, I decided it was in both of our best interests to leave.”

He looks up at Shun again, lip curling.

“You  _ are _ Kurosaki Shun, yes?  A boy named Yuya told me to find you.  That you might be able to escort me back to LDS.”

Shun hesitates, looking the boy over.  So this  _ isn’t _ Yuya, either.  This must be...what did Reiji say his name was?  Yuki? No, it was Yuuri. 

His ribs still ache, and it seems worse as it sinks in that he just took that blow for not Yuto, but a  _ Fusion _ soldier.  It takes everything he has not to scowl.  It takes even more to resist the urge to card this lying doppelganger right now.

But, Reiji had said these boys seemed important to the Professor.  If that was the case...maybe keeping a close eye on this one could give Shun an edge.

“I guess I can manage that,” he says with a grunt.  “Can  _ you _ walk?”

Yuuri blinks at him with a stony face.  Then he points to his ankle.

“I’m afraid not,” he says. 

“How the hell did you get us out of there, then?” Shun asks.

Yuuri’s stare doesn’t waver.  It’s so like Yuto’s, and yet so different and eerie, that Shun has to look away.

“Fine.  Don’t tell me.”

Irritated, Shun grabs Yuuri by the arm, heaving him up onto his back in one fell swoop.  Yuuri actually squeaks, maybe from the abruptness. For a minute, he seems about to smack Shun, but when he slips a bit, he squeaks again and throws his arms around Shun’s neck, nearly choking him.  Shun almost keels over.

“Dammit, could you be less of a sack of potatoes?” he says.

“Don’t grab me without saying anything first!” Yuuri hisses into Shun’s ear.  “Why would you do that?”

“This is the fastest way for us to move if you can’t walk.  Stop complaining.”

Shun manages to get him under the knees and heft him up, and Yuuri releases his death grip on Shun’s neck.  He’s...shockingly light. Shun had figured that if he was like Yuto, he’d be pretty easy to carry. Yuto had never been heavy, and it had always been easy to scoop him up for a noogie while he tried to escape, laughing.

But Yuuri seems to be made out of air, as though he’s nothing more than bones and skin.  Don’t they feed people at Academia? He puts the thought out of his head, and tries not to feel as exposed as he does with this kid on his back.  It will slow him down. He wants to just leave him and find someone else to take care of him.

But Academia wants him.  And if Shun knows one thing, it’s that he’s not willing to let Academia have  _ anything _ that it wants anymore.

* * *

“Yuya!”

Gongenzaka bellows into the dark trees, hands cupped around his mouth.  It makes Tsukikage wince — not by much, but enough that Gongenzaka notices it.

“It might not be wise to let them know of our position,” Tsukikage says.

“Let them come,” Gongenzaka growls.  “If they’re after Yuya, I, the man Gongenzaka, would much rather they come after  _ me _ first.”

Tsukikage blinks at him briefly.  Gongenzaka isn’t sure how to read the quiet boy, but eventually, Tsukikage looks away.

“That is admirable,” Tsukikage says after a beat.  “Yuya-dono is lucky to have such a friend.”

Gongenzaka only grunts in return to the compliment.  He’s only doing what is expected. He doesn’t think it deserves any praise.  Gongenzaka lifts his hands to his mouth again, walking along the edge of the ancient ruins field.

“Yuya!” he calls.  “Yuya! Are you still out there, Yuya!”

It’s too dark for him to be willing to enter the jungle just yet.  He’d just as soon trip as he would manage to find Yuya, even with his steadfast techniques.  Besides, if enemies came to him, he’d much rather be able to see them coming.

He’s about to shout again when Tsukikage throws up a hand to stop him, eyes wide.  Gongenzaka turns, squinting through the dark.

For a moment, he doesn’t know what it is he’s seeing.  All he sees, at first, is just a figure stumbling backwards, heel catching on the edge of a stair.  But before he can move, before he can jump to try to catch the person who is obviously about to fall, a voice rings out over the dark and quiet — so sharp and clear that it’s as though the owner of the voice is standing right beside him, yet so deep and dark that he feels a chill seep directly through his bones and into his heart.

**_“Now why don’t you be a good boy...and DIE.”_ **

Horrible shrieking fills the air.  Gongenzaka claps his hands over his ears as the ripple of sound rips through him as though it’s tearing up his insides.  The discordant waves of sound take physical form, shearing through the air and shoving the boy off of the steps. Gongenzaka can’t hear him yell over the sound of the shrieking, but he sees him hit each stair and bounce, rolling all the way to the bottom.

The sound is too intense — Gongenzaka can’t even get himself to take a step forward.  It’s as though the souls of the dead are clawing their way out of the earth, shrieking in agony.  His eyes blur with pained tears as he grits his teeth and calls on all of his training to stand his ground.

It’s only this that manages to keep him upright for long enough to realize that the boy who hit the ground isn’t anyone he knows.  The blue coat, the strange mask, the different shaped Duel Disk, he doesn’t recognize any of it. He can’t even tell if the boy is injured or not.  

A moment later, however, his Duel Disk glows blue, and as the horrifying shrieks finally fade, leaving only their ringing echo, he disappears.

Slowly, Gongenzaka lets his hands down from his ears.  His vision is still blurred, and he has to rub at his eyes.  What on earth was  _ that _ ?  Tsukikage points, and when Gongenzaka glances at him, he notices that his scarf is moving as though he’s speaking — but Gongenzaka can’t hear him.  That sound must have temporarily deafened him.

He looks, instead, to where Tsukikage points.

That’s when he almost lets his knees crumple with the shock of it.

Standing at the top of the staircase is Yuzu.

At least...it is Yuzu, isn’t it?  There are doppelgangers about, apparently.  But those are her pigtails. Her school uniform.  Her pendulum, swinging against her chest with a faint, almost imperceptible glow.

Those are not her eyes.  Deep, glowing with pinpricks of a pale, fiery blue instead of pupils.  Her face, cold and stony, as though she hadn’t just pushed an opponent down the stairs — pushed an opponent down the stairs!  Yuzu would never do such a thing!!

And yet, there she is — staring down at them with cold, blank eyes.  Beside her stands a gaunt, unnerving creature clothed in feathers, holding a bone-white violin.  But the duel is over. Shouldn’t the monster have dissipated as well?

Yuzu holds their gazes for one moment, staring them down.  And then, wordlessly, she turns. The monster vanishes as she does so, stalking off out of sight.  It’s then that Gongenzaka’s senses snap back to him.

“Yuzu!”

“Yuzu-dono!”

Gongenzaka’s legs flood with new strength and he charges up the stairs two at a time.  Yuzu isn’t far — she’s walking, slowly and steadily, towards something that Gongenzaka can’t fathom.  But that’s Yuzu. And he’s not about to let whatever darkness has gotten hold of his friend to get away with it.

“Yuzu!  You will turn and face me!” Gongenzaka bellows.

Yuzu does no such thing, continuing forward as though she hasn’t heard him.  Gongenzaka grits his teeth. He says a silent apology.

Then he dives forward and throws his arms around her, grabbing her around the waist and pinning her arms to her side before lifting her off the ground.

Yuzu goes ballistic.  She shrieks, Gongenzaka’s ears popping as his hearing returns.  Her legs bang against his knees, flailing and squirming as she twists back and forth in his arms.  She tries to whip her head back into his nose, but he holds himself back, squeezing her a little tighter.  She even tries to  _ bite _ him, leaning down and snapping at his arms.

But Gongenzaka does not release.  He has no idea what’s become of Yuzu, but he is not leaving her like this.

“Yuzu!  Get a hold of yourself!” Gongenzaka rumbles.  “Yuzu!”

* * *

Smoke lives in her lungs instead of air.  She chokes on it, coughs against it — lives on it.  Screams tangle in her head — simultaneously she wants to scream with them, and throw her head back and laugh.  Tears and laughter struggle for dominance in her throat and she tastes blood — or is that just her imagination?  She can’t remember. She has no idea — no idea what she’s doing. 

She can’t breathe.  She doesn’t need to breathe.  She’s — she beyond anything that — 

She really can’t breathe.

Yuzu chokes, kicking and flailing back to herself.  Her chest feels heavy. Oh. Fuck. She’s about to throw up.

She slumps against the thing that has her pinned down, head lurching forward, and pukes.  A soft swear sounds behind her, and she jostles backwards through the air, still held tight.

“Yuzu!  Breathe!”

Yuzu coughs and splutters, spitting out the last few dregs of her upset stomach and blinking through teary eyes.  She tries to inhale and chokes again.

“Can’t,” she squeaks.  “Too tight.”

A soft gasp of understand, and the arms — they are arms, she realizes — around her loosen.  She sucks down greedy gulps of air, slumping backwards into the warm, strong grip. Her brain is coming back to her now.  There’s only one person that could hold her like this.

“G-Gongenzaka?” she gasps, trying to get her vision to cooperate.”

She feels his rumbling sigh through her back, rattling her whole body.

“You’re back with us,” he grunts.  “Can you stand?”

“I...I don’t know.  W-what do you mean back?”

Gently, Gongenzaka lets her feet touch the floor.  She clings to his arm while he slowly releases her.  It seems, however, that shaky as she is, she can stand.  Puking aside, she feels shaky and weird. Why is she so dizzy?  And where is she? Why can’t she see? Is she blind??

Gongenzaka carefully moves around to in front of her, letting her continue to cling to his arm.  She squints and blinks — she’s not blind. It’s just dark. Oh. This is the ancient ruins field...

“Are you all right?” Gongenzaka asks.

“I...I think so?  What happened?”

Gongenzaka frowns, his brow furrowing.  His eyes flicker to the side, and when she looks, she finds him exchanging a glance with a dark-robed ninja beside him.  She almost missed him in the dark — he’s really blending in.

“Gongenzaka,” she says, squeezing his wrist to get his attention back to her.  “What happened?”

Gongenzaka’s eyes turn back to her, his lips tight.

“You were almost feral,” he says.  “It was as though you were possessed by something.  And that monster you had with you...”

Yuzu’s lips part.  What monster? Wait, she had been dueling, hadn’t she?  She remembered...

Her entire body seizes up as the memory strikes through her again.  Hokuto’s shocked face, imprinted on the card. Teppei’s horrified frozen expression.  And Ruri...

“Ruri!” she cries, grabbing Gongenzaka’s hand.  “Where’s Ruri?”

“Ruri?”

“Kurosaki-dono was here?” the ninja says, eyes narrowing.

“We were dueling!  Against the Obelisk Force!  But then...Hokuto and Teppei...”

Yuzu chokes on it, covering her mouth with her hand.  She can’t bear to think about it.

“They got...they were turned into,” she stumbles.

The ninja’s eyes narrow.  He turns, eyes flickering through the dark.  Then, silently, he darts forward towards the ground, almost disappearing into the dark.  A moment later, she feels the wind of him returning. In his fingers are two small slips of paper.  Yuzu chokes and looks away. Gongenzaka, however, leans over. His face contorts into several expressions — horror.  Disbelief. Rage. 

“What about Kurosaki-dono?” the ninja asks.

“I...I don’t know,” Yuzu says, blinking through tears.  Breathe, Yuzu. She has to breathe. She has to be here.  Whatever’s happening, it’s not over yet. “Ruri, she...she took a hit for me.  She went down. And after that, I...”

Actually, a lot of the in betweens of that duel are a blur to her too.  And after Ruri fell...

_ “Stop them from stealing everyone’s happiness.  Bring their smiles back.” _

She puts a hand on her deck box, and for a moment, imagines she feels a pulse in there.

“Was Kurosaki-dono also carded?” the ninja asks.

“I...I really don’t know, I don’t...remember...”

Yuzu’s head pangs, and she presses the heels of her palms to her forehead.  The ninja does not press further. Silently, he pockets the cards of Hokuto and Teppei.

“We must go,” he says.  “We can determine what happened here later.  We must return to LDS.”

That gets Yuzu back into the moment.  She whirls.

“Wait!!” she says. “You’re with Reiji, right??  Have you seen Yuya?”


	47. S H U N / S O R A / Y U Z U

_ Maiami City, Japan - RSV development studios are scrambling for answers in the wake of last night’s tragic accident at Kingdom Dueling Circuit, in which a duelist was brutally injured by an RSV hologram.  Pro-duelist — was taken to the hospital in critical condition, while his opponent, — , was not immediately available for comment —  _

  * Crumpled and smudged newspaper left on the floor in abandoned RSV development labs.  Some words are unreadable.



* * *

Yuuri may be light, but Shun might be more injured than he first thought.

Every step sends a stabbing pain up through his ribs, and it’s taking everything Shun has not to let Yuuri sense it.  And the fucking heat from the lava field isn’t helping matters. He’d thought the jungle was thick and stuffy, but stepping out into this crackling heat is going to drive him mad.  Beads of sweat roll down his forehead and off the tip of his nose, bangs plastered to his head. His coat, made of tough fabric that was supposed to help deflect at least part of the cutting damage of debris in Heartland, is swelteringly hot, and it’s getting harder to breathe.  Yuuri’s weight against his back is only making it hotter. His knees shake when he takes another step forward — how far is LDS? He...he can see the bridge, but it’s so far away. He has to get there before he gets caught.

“Oy, Kurosaki, did you really think I was going to let you get away?”

He swears, choking on it as his next step sends him skidding down to one knee.  Yuuri’s arms tighten around his neck as he nearly slides off him, knees tightening on either side of him.  Shun chances a glance over his shoulder.

Sure enough, Sora stands only twenty feet off, still lazily sucking on a sucker.  He looks almost bored, now, not at all the wild glee he’d shown off during their duel.

“You’re only dragging out the inevitable,” he says around his sucker.  “Just put him down. He has to go back to Academia anyway.”

Yuuri’s arms tighten again around Shun’s neck, almost choking him, and he can nearly feel Yuuri’s heartbeat screaming through his back.  His breaths suddenly sound short and panicked. Fuck. Shun tightens his grip on Yuuri and pushes himself back to his feet. Yuuri seems to be someone Sora is after — if that’s the case, as long as he holds onto Yuuri, Sora can’t card him without carding both of them.  That might give them just enough protection to make some distance.

He hears Sora’s feet kicking against rocks as he walks —  _ walks _ , not runs — after them.  Shun bites back a scream of frustration and rage.  How dare Sora mock him like that — walking so lazily after them as though he has no rush, as though he knows he can overtake them without effort.

He’s right, though, Shun thinks with an awful twist in his stomach.  There is only so much Shun can do, and the pain in his ribs is getting worse.  He won’t get a rematch with Sora, either — the minute he gives him the opening, Sora will card him.

“That’s quite enough!!  How rude of you!”

The voice catches Shun off guard, along with the scrabble of heeled shoes on the ground.  He makes the decision to twist to look over his shoulder, past Yuuri. 

It’s that ninja, Shun realizes, the one with the red scarf.  He’s shot in front of Sora, blocking his path. But he wasn’t the one who spoke, was he??  That hadn’t sounded like his voice.

The scrabbling gets a little louder as a red-faced girl hurtles around Sora and the ninja, planting herself between Shun and them.

“The nerve of you!” she cries.  “To harass those who can’t properly fight back!  Perhaps I should teach you some manners!”

“No, Mieru-dono,” the ninja calls back over his shoulder, without taking his eyes off of Sora.  “Go with Kurosaki-dono and Yuuri-dono. Get them to LDS. I will buy you time.”

For just a moment, the girl, Mieru, looks like she’s about to argue.  Then she huffs, and spins in a whirlwind of her curly orange hair towards Kurosaki and Yuuri.  She scurries over to the pair of them.

“Well, you heard him, let’s go!” she says.  “Are you all right? Do you need help carrying him?”

“I’m...I’m fine,” Shun manages through grit teeth.  He’s not, but Mieru is smaller than Yuuri, so she definitely won’t be able to carry him — and trying to support him between the two of them will likely slow them down even more than simply suffering through it himself.  

Mieru looks unconvinced, biting her lip and narrowing her eyes at him.  But, thankfully, she doesn’t argue. She just puts one hand on Yuuri’s back and the other on Shun’s arm, and starts to lightly push them towards the bridge.

Behind them, Shun hears the hum of Real Solid Vision monsters coming to life, and the clash of steel against steel.  He hopes that ninja is as good as Reiji seems to think he is.

Lava boils and pops bubbles of more heat on either side of them as they make their slow, difficult way.  Shun almost slips more than once on the uneven terrain, but luckily Mieru is just enough to help him keep his balance.  They reach natural ramp of stone up towards the bridge. As soon as they’re up there, they have a straight shot to LDS down the road.  Shun inhales, and forces himself to keep moving.

His entire body aches with pain, every muscle trembling, by the time they reach the top of the bridge.  

“H-hey, perhaps you should take a moment,” Mieru says, gripping his arm tightly.

“No...time,” Shun grunts.

Yuuri says nothing, but his hands tighten on each other in front of Shun.  Shun trembles a moment, nearly dropping to his knees — but he keeps his feet.  The heat clings to his skin and drys his mouth, but he doesn’t let himself fall.  He takes a deep inhale and exhale. Forward.

At least, that’s his intent before he hears Mieru squeak.  Yuuri’s breaths tighten again and he sounds like he’s choking.  Shun forces himself to turn around.

Three grinning Obelisk Force soldiers stand on the bridge before them, cutting off their exit.  They can’t go back the way they came — Sora and the ninja are that way, and Shun knows he can’t outrun these soldiers, or make it the long way to LDS.  He bites back a swear. Yuuri starts to squirm in his grip.

“Let me down, let me down, let me down,” he hisses.  “I won’t go back, I’ll card them, let  _ go _ of me —”

Shun is more than happy to let Yuuri slide off of his back, and due to his struggling, Yuuri hits the ground with a bit more force than perhaps he should have, letting out a gasp of pain.  Shun’s whole body trembles, and it takes more effort than he likes to admit to lift his duel disk.

“Yuuri-san, it’s time to return home,” says one of the Obelisk.

“Fuck you,” Yuuri spits back at him.

The three actually chuckle.

“Come on, now...at least you won’t be carded like the rest of these scum.”

“I’ll fucking card  _ myself _ before I let you take me back!”

Shun flinches at that, glancing back over his shoulder.  Yuuri would — he’d do  _ that _ ?  Yuuri actually struggles to his feet, leaning on his good foot to stay standing.  His face is pale and sweaty, his eyes wide, like a cornered animal. Shun’s eyes slide back to the Obelisk Force.  Why does Academia want him so badly?

Before he or Yuuri can do anything, though, a blur of orangey hair streaks past them, and Mieru’s skirt flips about her as she skids to a stop between them and the Obelisk Force.

“And yet more ruffians!!” she cries.  “I’ll have to show you how we do it here in Maiami City, since all of you have such poor manners!”

“Wait, you don’t know — ” Shun gasps at her.

But Mieru’s already turned on her Duel Disk and swept her hand out beside her in a huff.  The three Obelisk laugh. Shun swears, turning on his Duel Disk to join the duel before he has to suffer an intrusion penalty.  He hears Yuuri turning on his Duel Disk beside him as well.

“At least you Standard punks are entertaining,” one of the Obelisk says, turning on their Duel Disk.  “My turn! I summon Ancient Gear Hunting Hound!”

There it is, Shun thinks with grit teeth and a shudder.  The all-too-familiar metal monster leaps onto the field, creaking and gnashing its teeth.

“I set two cards and end my turn.”

“My turn!” Mieru says as the other finishes.  “I will start by setting one monster, and setting one card.  I shall end my turn.”

That’s it??  Shun thinks with a swear.  And she decided to put herself into this duel?  She’s going to get killed! The second Obelisk barks out a laugh.

“That’s it?  After such a strong start, too?  You’re pathetic,” he says.

Mieru only sniffs at him, putting her hands on her hips.

“This what I mean when I say you are all  _ very rude _ ,” she says.

“My turn,” the second Obelisk says without responding.  “I’ll also summon my Ancient Gear Hunting Hound! And since you have a monster, I can deal you six hundred points of effect damage!”

The second dog leaps onto the bridge, and it opens its maw to let loose a bolt of red energy.  Mieru squeaks and throws her hands up in front of her, but her life points still take the hit.

“And then I’ll attack your pathetic face down!”

The dog leaps forward, gnashing its teeth at the large image of the face down card.  Mieru lets out a little huff.

“Prediction Princess Coinorma’s flip effect activates!” she says.  “I can special summon a level three or lower Prediction Princess in face down defense position.”

She places the card down on the field, as a tiny girl with big braids and an even bigger coin appears, giggling with its glowing coin before the hound bites down on it and makes it disappear into a burst of sparkles.

“Hmph.  Like that changes anything,” the Obelisk says.  “I set a card. My turn is over.”

“My turn!” Yuuri says, before Shun can say anything himself.  “I activate Polymerization from my hand!”

Shun bites back a rush of revulsion and rage, his very core shaken by disgust as the all-too-familiar light begins to twist and warp the air.  Yuuri’s face is lit eerily by the light of the spell, eyes still wide and wild.

“I fuse Predator Plant Moray Nepenthes and Predator Plant Cephalotusnail in my hand,” he hisses.  “Two beautiful flowers with an insect-alluring fragrance, now become one — and from the hell beneath your petals, give birth to a new terror!”

Shun’s immediate sense of revulsion only spikes, but this time, it feels more involuntary, as though some disgusting smelling gas has filled the air, or he’s just bit into something rotten.  A strange, heavy presence fills the air, and Shun feels like throwing up.

“Come forth!” Yuuri cries.  “Starving Venom Fusion Dragon!”

The monster that lurches forward from the void makes Shun’s stomach twist further.  He feels as though poison creeps through his veins just by looking at it — something about it’s Real Solid Vision feels more solid, more real than others.  The dragon’s massive fangs drip with poison that actually seems to sizzle against the ground when it drips from its chin. Huge, bulging eye pods leer from inside plant like maws all down the creature’s thin, spindly body.  Bile actually rises up in Shun’s throat.

“Starving Venom, attack the one that doesn’t have a monster yet,” Yuuri spits.

The dragon looms low over Yuuri, arms on either side of him as though forming some kind of protective tent.  It hisses, spitting out more of its venom, and Mieru has to dance out of the way to avoid getting hit by it. The dragon’s tail lashes out, shoots forward like a long, snake-like scorpion’s tail towards the Obelisk who currently hasn’t summoned anything.

“Not so fast!” calls one of the others.  “I activate my face down trap — Fusion Dispersal!”

Yuuri’s eyes bulge and his face goes pale.  Before the tail can reach its target, the dragon turns to light and dissipates.  Two small balls of light part from the shape that was the dragon, reappearing before Yuuri in the shape of the two eerie plant monsters that he had used for the fusion summon.

“You think we weren’t prepared for your deck, Yuuri-sama?” one of them says with a malicious tone.  “Fusion Dispersal sends your dragon back to the Extra Deck and resummons its materials — plus, it deals damage to you based on the highest attack of the fusion materials.  So take sixteen hundred points of damage!”

The two-headed plant monster before him lets out a small cough, and a cloud of gas in the shape of the monster passes over Yuuri.  Yuuri lets out a painful shriek, dropping down to his knees as his ankle gives out beneath him.

“Bastards,” Yuuri gasps, eyes watering with barely contained tears.  “I won’t go back, I  _ won’t  _ go back, you won’t get me —”

“I’ll activate my face down as well!” the second Obelisk says.  “Fusion Burst! When a Fusion monster is returned to the deck, you’ll all take damage equal to its attack!”

Shun swears.  He hasn’t even gotten a hit in yet, and he’s about to take twenty-eight hundred damage!  And — oh, fuck — Yuuri only has twenty four hundred life points left!

Yuuri’s eyes bulge with panic, and Shun swears, Mieru goes pale, all of them fumbling for something, anything to stop this attack — 

“I activate the Action Card, Flame Guard!”

As the trap card lets out a burst of energy towards them, a wall of flame explodes between them and Obelisk, burning away the explosion.  Shun freezes. What the...who...

All eyes turn up towards the ridge of stone overlooking the bridge.  That’s...who  _ is  _ that?  Wasn’t he one of the ones who lost in one of the early rounds of the tournament?

The boy shoots a huge grin at the onlookers, pushing a hand through his hair.

“Not to fear!” he calls.  “For I, the Great Neo New Sawatari Shingo, am here!”

Just as he makes to leap off the ridge, probably in a dramatic fashion, his duel disk sparks.

_ “Intrusion Penalty.  Two thousand life points.” _

Sawatari shrieks as the electricity sparks out of his disk, making his foot catch in the middle of his jump, and in seconds, he’s sliding face first down the ridge and landing in a heap onto the bridge. 

Shun bites back the urge to let out a groan.

Great.  Another Standard idiot to babysit.

* * *

Dammit.  He’s lost so much time with this boring, useless duel.  Sora bites back a lump of frustration as he hits the button on his disk, sending a wash of purple light over the red-scarved ninja.  Kurosaki could be way ahead of him by now; he wants to take care of him quickly so that he can focus on the other part...

He tries to pretend he doesn’t feel as sick as he does when he accidentally lets his mind brush the topic.  He hasn’t seen Yuya on the field anywhere since that XYZ girl that looked like Yuzu took him away. Could he have gotten mistaken for Yuuri?  He wouldn’t put it past those dumbasses on Obelisk Force. If Yuya got caught up in this....he needs to find Yuuri right away and take him back to Academia, so that they can’t take Yuya by accident instead.

The light finishes swallowing the ninja, and he pulls the card free from his disk, waving it up and down as the image appears.  Dammit, he thinks again. Wasted time.

The yell that rings out behind him makes his whole body tense up, and before he can stop himself, he looks.

He regrets it immediately.  Yuzu’s horrified eyes burn into him from across the lava field, and he feels like throwing up.  What the heck is wrong with him? It shouldn’t matter what Yuzu thinks...after all, she has no idea the truth of their mission, so she can’t know that he’s doing the right thing.  

So why does it make him feel so  _ awful _ all of a sudden?

He bites down hard on his sucker and turns away from her.  He  _ cannot _ waste any more time.  He needs to card Kurosaki and take Yuuri back to Academia.  He ducks towards an opening in the plateau near him. Kurosaki didn’t go that way with Yuuri, but if he remembers the city layout right, this cave should lead him to a shortcut up to the bridge, where he can cut them off.  Plus, he can lose Yuzu in the process.

Heat radiates off of the walls in here, and he’s already sweating.  It’s even hotter inside the cave than it was outside, and he realizes why as he reaches a thin rock bridge over a pool of underground lava.  Reiji definitely doesn’t skimp on the details of his fields, does he? Sora briefly wonders if the lava would actually kill him — the heat certainly feels real.  And if their intel is right, and Reiji knows about Academia’s resources and has a hint of their plans, it would make sense for him to make legitimately dangerous defenses.

He hurries over the bridge, just wide enough for him to walk normally with no one on either side of him.  

He hears the scream right when he reaches the other side.  For a minute, he just freezes. Every hair stands on end, and despite the overwhelming heat, chills shudder through him, his breath lodging in his throat.  Something about that scream raises up something primal in him — some ancient instinct, something telling him to  _ run run run _ and never look back.

But he’s an Academian soldier.  He’s trained his entire life to suppress his flight response.  He swallows down the unnatural burst of fear, and turns to face the source.

Yuzu stands at the other end of the bridge.  But yet...it’s  _ not _ Yuzu.  Sora bites back another wash of uncertainty.  What is  _ wrong _ with her?  She stands with her shoulders slightly hunched over, her lips peeled back from her grit teeth like a snarl, hands opening and closing like claws.  Her eyes...are her eyes glowing, or is that just the light of the lava below? Her hair almost seems to flap slightly from some wind he doesn’t feel.

Sora knows he needs to go.  He doesn’t have time to deal with Yuzu, to try and make her understand — and he knows she wouldn’t, either.  She’s too kind and soft hearted to understand the sacrifices that have to be made for utopia.

She takes a step towards the bridge, and he hears an actual snarl leave her teeth.  He steps back automatically. Whatever’s happened to her, she doesn’t seem soft hearted  _ now _ .

“Yuzu?” he says, cursing the way his voice breaks a bit.  “Yuzu, what...happened?

Yuzu looks like she’s having trouble breathing, as though she just ran a maraton, her chest heaving with each breath.  And when a voice rips out of her throat, it doesn’t sound like her — well, it does, but it sounds like there are two, maybe three voices coming out of her all at once, like she’s possessed.

**“You** **_disgust_ ** **me.”**

It feels like a punch to the gut, in spite of everything, in spite of how much he knows that he’s right — that he  _ has _ to be right, he really has to be, because if he isn’t...where does that leave him?  It takes everything he has to keep his expression solid. He pops the sucker out of his mouth.

“Yuzu, you wouldn’t understand,” he says.  “I don’t have time.”

**“All of you are like this.  Every single one of you.”**

This...this can’t be Yuzu, can it?  She’s started to tremble, as though she really  _ is _ possessed.

**“I won’t let you get away.  Not a single duelist. I won’t let any of you escape.”**

Something is wrong.  Something is terribly, terribly wrong.  Yuzu lifts her arm, and her Duel Disk activates.

Sora knows he needs to go.  He needs to finish his mission.  He doesn’t have time to feel this weird twisting sensation in his stomach when he looks at whatever Yuzu’s become, not certain what it is he’s feeling.

He lifts his arm, and turns his Duel Disk on.

He has time, he reasons.  Plenty of time.

* * *

It’s a blur.  It’s...hot. Too hot.  All she’s completely aware of is the feeling of sweat matting her hair to her neck and her clothes to her body.  That and the fuzz. There’s a thick, cottony fuzz in her head, stuffed to her ears, a thrumming electricity running through her body.  There are thoughts caught in the fuzz, but most of them, she doesn’t really remember. Snippets pass through her every now and then: the flash of purple light and a card fluttering to the ground.  The screams of a thousand people, running and stumbling past each other in a mob as a huge metal giant crashes through a building over head. The glare of a stadium light, and the chants of a crowd whipped into a frenzy.  A round face with a puffy blue ponytail, looking at her with cold eyes as he pulls a card from his desk, crunching on his lollipop.

And a thought, running through her head over and over and over again.

_ Don’t let any one of them escape. _

Don’t let who escape?

_ Destroy every single one of them. _

Who?  Who is she destroying?

Who  _ is  _ she right now?

Pain, suddenly, right in her chest.  What is that? A heart attack?

No, she realizes with a jolt.  Panic. It’s panic. She’s...she’s not in control of her own body — only the anger is.  The poison, toxic anger that pours through her veins, moving her like puppet strings, burning away even the memory of her own name.  No! She can’t — she can’t lose herself to this! She needs to...she needs to — 

_ I’m — I’m  _

The anger won’t let her remember.  It won’t even let her remember why she’s angry.

_ No, but I’m...my name is...I’m —  _

Two — three? — names fight for dominance.  She can’t remember which one is hers. She sees as though from the end of a tunnel, watching the world spin as her body makes a dive for an Action Card, leaping the perilous jump to a pillar on the lava.  She sees the massive, torn up tiger monster on the other side of the bridge, the tight jaw of the duelist commanding it. She sees his lips moving, but she doesn’t hear them.

His lips move again.  They’re — 

That’s her name.

She reaches for it.  Blindly screaming inside her own head, trying to detangle herself from the other screams, the other memories, all tangled up in the cotton so that she can’t tell where she begins and the others start. 

For a moment, everything resisted.

And then whatever silence that’s claimed her ears shatters, and the world snaps into focus.

“You’re only going to hurt yourself, Yuzu,” the boy — Sora — says.

Her name.

Yuzu wakes up.


	48. T S U K I K A G E / Y U Z U

_ Why didn’t they work why didn’t the emergency phase-out measures work how could this have happened _

  * Scrawled hurriedly in an otherwise empty, unlabeled notebook left in the remains of RSV Development Labs, followed by a series of jumbled and illegible formulas



* * *

 

This is turning into a disaster.

For just a moment, Tsukikage’s mind casts back to the start of all of this, just a voice on his earpiece before the next round of the tournament, telling him tersely that Academia invaders had arrived and that Reiji was initiating the Quartet of Quandary protocol.  He remembers Hikage, eyes flicking quickly to Tsukikage before pressing his fingers to his own radio, asking just one question.

_The other contestants are civilians.  They will not be safe. They don’t know what’s coming.  They’re not trained._

_They may die._

And a brief, pained silence from the other end, one that Tsukikage could only imagine involved Reiji resting his entire face in his hands, glasses cast aside on the table, a position that Tsukikage has seen many, many times before, when Reiji did not know he was watching.

_I know.  But this is all I can do._

_To save the most people I can._

The memory is enough, for a moment, to distract Tsukikage from the gnawing, angry loneliness, anger, and fear that has erupted in his chest having seen the violet light over take his brother, and the cold look of the one who had done it.  It’s enough for a moment to steel himself against the desire to bolt after the boy when he ducks away.

No time.  There is no time to seek revenge.  Hikage would want him to finish the mission.

There is also no time to acknowledge Hiragi Yuzu’s shriek of rage, and her inhuman burst of speed forward as she bolts after Shiunin Sora.

“Yuzu!” Gongenzaka roars, taking a step towards her.

Tsukikage bites back a mental swear.  Civilians. They are civilians. They don’t know how to stick together, how to stick to a plan of attack.  He can’t corral them or keep track of them. They are making this battlefield more dangerous than it has to be.

He grabs Gongenzaka’s arm.  He has no means of stopping the much larger boy if Gongenzaka decides he has a mind not to listen to Tsukikage, but he banks on Gongenzaka being more reasonable than the others seem to be.

He is right to do so, because Gongenzaka’s eyes slid to him, wide and mouth slack.  Tsukikage points — even through the brief haze of anger, confusion, aching sadness, and utter exhaustion, he has noticed.  Up on the bridge, there — Yuuri. Kurosaki and two others are with him, and they are cornered. Gongenzaka swears.

“Yuya!” he yells, and begins to run towards them.

It is not Yuya, but Tsukikage neither has the time nor the patience to correct the mistake.  For the time being, it has gotten Gongenzaka Noboru moving towards the intended direction, and will help Tsukikage keep track of more of them.  

Hiragi Yuzu is not a target, he reasons as he darts after Gongenzaka.  Shiunin Sora will likely not risk a drawn out confrontation with her. She will be fine.

Save the most people you can, he thinks again as he rushes towards the besieged group.  You can only save the most people that you can.

* * *

Yuzu’s head roars with an ache she can’t place, and her skin itches with the memory of _something_ crawling underneath it.  She...she doesn’t remember how she got in here.

For a moment, she just gapes, dazed, at the underground lava chamber she’s found herself inside.

It’s all the opening Sora needs.  Face flushed and panting with the heat, he makes a leap for an Action card that she could have snatched in her sleep if she’d been more aware.

“Flame Ball!” he yells.  “I deal you two hundred damage!”

Yuzu flinches back, but she’s not quick enough on the draw.  A ball of flame leaps out of the lake of lava below them and sears through her, drawing out a cry.  Sora follows through on his roll and skids to a stop back on the other side of the land bridge.

Yuzu gasps, trying to catch up.  

She’s dueling.  She’s dueling Sora.  But why? Think, Yuzu, make your brain work.

She inhales sharply, almost choking on the dry heat.  Oh, gods, she remembers now. The...that ninja boy. Sora turned him into...

Tears bubble to the corner of her eyes.  Sora...Sora did that? The sweet boy who mixed his frozen yogurt into his ice cream and called it a new invention?  Who teased the little kids of You Show and then climbed up onto a bookshelf where they couldn’t reach him, giggling the whole time?  That Sora? That Sora was...?

She didn’t remember how the duel had begun, but somehow, she could feel each turn as though she remembered playing the cards, as though it were etched onto her soul.  She heard the soft rustle of fabric as Bloom Bard hovered down beside her, just behind her. She felt the monster put a soft hand on her shoulder, and blinked away her tears.

“Sora, I...” she said.  “Sora.”

Sora’s face didn’t change, except that his lips seemed to tighten, and he curled his Duel Disk hand into a fist.

“Oh, so now you’re going to talk to me?” he says.  His shoulders heave, as though he’s been putting a lot of effort into this duel.  “Save it, Yuzu.”

“Sora, please,” she gasps.  She doesn’t know what she’s done this whole duel, or how it got to this point.  She doesn’t know what’s happened to Sora. He turned a person into a card. The very thought of it makes her want to crumple with rage again...but more than that, it makes her want to sob. It makes her want to collapse to her knees and cry until she has no more tears left.

But Sora is still there, watching her with that awful expression, his lip slightly curling as though he’s disgusted.  This can’t be the same Sora. What happened to the Sora she remembered?

“Sora, was who you were a lie this whole time?” she said. “Were we ever friends?”

Does she imagine the flinch in Sora’s eyes?  It’s hard to tell with the wavering of the heat rising up from the lava pit.

“No,” he says, with such cold finality that it makes Yuzu’s heart want to shatter.

She rolls her hands into fists.  All at once, her tears seem to dry away, but she wipes them with the back of her hand anyway.

She doesn’t remember how this duel started.

_“Bring back their smiles, please.”_

She swallows hard.  Ruri’s still missing.  Maybe she’s a card too.  Maybe it’s because of the people that Sora came here with.  Maybe she should stay angry.

When she looks at him, though, she doesn’t know how to be.  So she pushes down the lump of anger and sadness in her chest.  And she tries smiling instead. It makes the tears start again, but she ignores them.

“Sorry,” she says.  “Sorry, Sora, but I won’t accept that.  I’m going to find that old smile and bring it back.”

Does this get a reaction out of Sora?  She can’t tell through the blurring of her eyes or the wavering of the heat in the air.  It’s selfish of her, and she knows it immediately. But Sora — Sora is her friend. Whatever happened in this duel so far, she wants to prove that.

She glances over the field, at Bloom Bard, at Sora’s tiger, at her bare backrow at their lifepoints, both just barely hovering over two hundred each already — at the Action Card on the spire just above them.

Sora sees it the moment she does.  He swears, leaping for a pillar that he can climb to get closer.  Yuzu spins towards Bloom Bard, and she reacts as though she’s heard Yuzu’s thoughts, cupping her hands for Yuzu to step into, and launching her up into the air.

Yuzu spins in the air, twisting towards the card — she is inches, inches away, she can make it!  Sora leaps — they are so close that they might collide — her fingers brush the tip of the card first —

A siren echoes, and the card disappears under Yuzu’s hand.  She and Sora soar past each other, and Yuzu gasps as the heat dissipates around her, as the light changes from the glowing red to the harsh pale white of daylight, and she hits concrete, falling and skidding against her bare knees with a cry of pain.

She squints through the harsh light and gasps.  What happened?

_“This round of the Maiami Championship has now concluded.  This round of the Maiami Championship has now concluded.”_

The tournament...it’s over?  The field shut off! But...

Yuzu pulls herself to her feet, feeling dizzy — the light is too bright, after that dim cave.  Where is she, in the city? It takes her a moment to recognize it again, and she’s floored by just how real those Solid Vision fields had felt.  She’s...downtown. Only a few blocks away from LDS. The streets feel cold and eerie in the wake of the previous heat from the lava field — and without the fields to hide it, the city is shockingly deserted.  A ghost city.

“Yuzu!!”

The voice bellows down from somewhere overhead, and she spins.  Gongenzaka! He’s up above her, on the bridge! Relief crashes through her chest.  She still doesn’t remember leaving him and Tsukikage behind, and she’s relieved to see that he seems to be okay.

Gongenzaka looks grim, though, tight-lipped and ashen.  What happened? Her heart clenches. She scans the rest of the bridge, and sees a scattering of faces.  Mieru leans over the railing, her bushy hair falling over her shoulders. Kurosaki is just barely visible, hanging back and not looking at her, touching gingerly at his side.  Sawatari is here, for some reason, grinning as though he’s just won the tournament. She recognizes that Broadway boy, Dennis, from when he saved her during the duel, and he shoots her a little wave.

And then — for a moment, her knees feel weak with relief.  Yuya! There he is!

Her eyes catch Gongenzaka’s again, though, and she looks again.  Wait...no. No, it’s...is it Yuya? He’s wearing the right jacket...

“Where’s — Where’s Yuya?” she shouts up to Gongenzaka.

His lips tighten again.

“We haven’t found him,” he calls back.  His eyes flicker to the boy who looks like Yuya, and Yuzu’s awful suspicions are confirmed.  That’s not Yuya. His scowl is proof enough — it must be Yuuri. Why is he wearing Yuya’s jacket?

An awful thought springs to her mind.  She whips around to face Sora.

Sora’s eyes widen when her eyes meet his, and some color drains out of his face.  But before she can say a word, and before she can try to move forward, Sora jerks his arm up towards him, hitting a button on his Duel Disk.  He turns to blue light, and dissipates.

Yuzu feels bile rise up in her throat.  Oh. Oh god. Yuya, where’s _Yuya_ , he couldn’t have — he couldn’t...

She feels faint and dizzy.  So much has happened all at once and now, it’s all simply stopped — what is she supposed to do now?  Where’s Yuya? Ruri? What _happened_ out here?  And who is supposed to give her the answers?

She looks back towards the bridge, desperate to find something, anything in the faces of the people up there.

What she finds is a new face among the group, all other eyes turned towards him, his level gaze on hers.  Yuzu’s throat closes. She’s not sure for a moment what she feels — annoyance? Anger? Desperation? A need to scream in his face?

She doesn’t have the time to figure out what it is she feels, either.  Akaba Reiji fixes his glasses impassively. Yuzu feels something in her break.

“What is happening?” she yells up at him.  “What is going on??”

Reiji only watches her quietly, not a single emotion passing over his face.  Then he reaches up to resettle his scarf on his shoulders, as though completely unaware of all of the eyes on him.

“Hiragi-san,” he calls down, soft yet carrying.  “Perhaps you ought to come up here.”


	49. Y U Z U / Y U Y A / ???

_ I have made a terrible mistake _

  * Scrawled at the end of an RSV research report in the remains of RSV Development Labs



* * *

Yuzu’s heart throws itself against her ribs as she makes it up the last of the steps.  Akaba Reiji waits quietly for her, looking entirely unperturbed. Something like irritation flares in Yuzu’s heart.  How can he look so calm!! Doesn’t he know what’s been happening?

She stops a few feet away from him, trying not to let her fists shake at her sides.

“What’s going on?”

Her question hangs in the air for a moment, a longer moment than she wants.  The others on the bridge exchange glances, or keep staring at Reiji, waiting for him to speak.  Before he can, however, Sawatari leaps forward.

“That’s right, why don’t you finally tell us all what’s going on?” Sawatari said.  “You wouldn’t even tell  _ me  _ everything about the Lancers!”

Yuzu’s lips part.

“Lancers?”

Reiji only blinks. He fixes his glasses.  Sawatari picks up the thread again before anyone else can speak.

“Well, that’s what the tournament was for, wasn’t it?” he says.  “This was a selection exam for the Lancers! Your dueling warriors!”

Yuzu feels something cold twisting in her chest.  She shoots her gaze to Gongenzaka, but his are fixed on Reiji, his arms folded tightly against his chest and his lips pressed tightly together.  Dennis frowns, scratching his head. After giving Sawatari a slightly annoyed look, Reiji coughs lightly, to get attention he already has.

“Sawatari is correct,” he says.  “You all ought to be quite proud of yourselves — you have repelled an invading interdimensional force.  As the survivors, you should be pleased.”

Yuzu flinches.  Her breaths shorten.

“The  _ survivors _ ?” she says.  “What about the people who — who didn’t survive??”

Reiji’s placid eyes do not change, holding hers.

“If they couldn’t survive this,” he says.  “They wouldn’t have survived what was coming.”

A buzz fills Yuzu’s head.  Her arms are starting to shake and her mouth is going dry.  Her eyes flicker over those present, one by one, counting, repeating the names she knows.  As though if she chants them in her head over and over, the people who aren’t here will suddenly be there.  As though if she keeps counting, Yuya will appear. But he’s not here. There’s only the boy with his face, but a scowl like she’s never seen on Yuya’s, so close and yet so distant that it makes her want to scream.

“Are...are we all that’s left?” she gasps, her voice cracking.  “From the tournament? Are we the only ones still here?”

Reiji blinks.  It’s the only confirmation she needs.  She sways, her legs threatening to give out from underneath her.  Oh, god, god,  _ no _ ,  _ Yuya _ , he can’t — he couldn’t have — he couldn’t have disappeared, couldn’t have been lost in a burst of violet light, his face twisted in panic imprinted on a slip of paper — 

Before she can snap, however, Kurosaki does.

He launches himself at Reiji, snatching him up by the scarf, eyes wide and cheeks red.

“What are you saying?” he yells.  “Are you telling me — Ruri —”

Yuzu’s heart stops again and she sways for a different reason, taking a stumbling step back.  Oh god. Ruri, too — she disappeared, she...she disappeared and...

She presses her hands over her mouth and squeezes her eyes shut, willing the tears not to come.  She can’t cry. She can’t cry!! She needs to — she needs to...there has to be something she can...

She hears the scuffle of feet and opens her eyes to find Reiji easily breaking Kurosaki’s grip on him, pushing him slightly back.

“She knew the risks she was taking,” Reiji says calmly.  “And you did as well.”

“You shouldn’t have sent her out there!” Kurosaki screams, his eyes wide and wild.  “You shouldn’t have let her go out there!”

“And...and what about us?” Yuzu says, her voice so small she can barely hear it.

Still, Reiji seems to hear her, his eyes flickering towards her.  Yuzu’s shoulders tremble, she’s shaking so badly she’s sure she’s going to collapse.  Gongenzaka moves over to her, taking her by the shoulders to steady her.

Yuzu can’t stop it.  The tears roll down her cheeks one after the other.

“What about us!” she screams at Reiji, hoping to see something, anything like at least the tiniest bit of remorse in his eyes. “We  _ didn’t _ know the risks!  You — you sent us out here, you  _ knew _ , but we didn’t!  Why didn’t we get a choice, Reiji!!  Why...why did Ruri...why did everyone...why did  _ Yuya _ ...”

She shakes, falling back against Gongenzaka and trying to swallow back her tears, but failing.  And still, Reiji only watches her, his face unchanging, his stance unmoveable. 

And it angers her.

She wrenches herself out of Gongenzaka’s grip.  Her body trembles so badly that she’s not sure she can walk, but as the trembling turns to anger, she knows she can’t fall.  She stalks towards him, until she’s only inches from him. He’s so much taller than her, but she doesn’t care, she doesn’t feel intimidated by his impassive eyes staring down at her.  No remorse. No sadness. He sent them to war and he didn’t even tell them.

“And what should I have told you?” Reiji says.  “Should I have told you the truth? That there are other worlds, and one would destroy us if we would let them?  Should I have sent the world into a panic over interdimensional invaders? Let people run wild in the streets to be cut down one by one as has happened in XYZ?”

“We should have had the choice,” Yuzu says.  “You should have given us the  _ choice _ to fight!”

“If I had, would you have been any less angry with me?”

Yuzu’s tears blur her eyes, but she’s too angry to care how it makes her look.

“We didn’t know!” she screams.  “If we’d known, we would have — would have been prepared — we’re only  _ kids  _  — ”

“Would you?” Reiji says, with that awful, horrible, impassive look.  “Would you really, Hiragi Yuzu, have been prepared to fight any harder than you already did if you had known what was coming?”

Yuzu can’t breathe.  She wants...she wants to grab him by his scarf and strangle him.  Because of him...because of  _ him _ ...

“Perhaps you would like to demonstrate,” Reiji says, pushing up his glasses.  “Show me that you would have been more powerful having known the caliber of your enemies.”

He sweeps his arm out to the side of him, not breaking her gaze as his Duel Disk turns on.  Her eyes widen.

“You want  _ duel _ me?  Now?”

Reiji nods.  As she stares at him, open mouthed, he finally lifts his eyes from her to the rest of them.

“You have survived the first onslaught,” he says, to all gathered.  “There have been losses. But they would have come regardless of our preparation.”

His eyes slide to Kurosaki, who still looks like he wants to throw himself at Reiji, face red and his entire body shaking.

“I plan to make sure there are no others,” he says.  “That is the purpose of the Lancers selection. All of you here have passed.  And if you would fight to make sure no others fall to this loss, then you will join me in taking the fight to its source.”

His gaze returns once again to Yuzu, and this time she flinches in spite of himself.

“Or will you show me with your dueling, Hiragi Yuzu, that I have been mistaken in my methods?”

Yuzu’s heart clenches.  Before she can think better of it, she squeezes the tears from her eyes, and sweeps her hand out to her side, turning on her Duel Disk.

“Fine,” she says.  “If that’s what you want to do — I’ll show you the pain of everyone who was lost because of you!”

Even then, Reiji’s expression doesn’t change, and she wants to punch him.  But he says nothing more. He only hits a button on his Duel Disk, and the Action Field deploys.

Yuzu leaps back as the ground shimmers with the growing field, the ball of Action Cards rising up between them.  The tall skyscrapers of her own city disappear and are replaced with new ones, ones she’s never seen before — no, wait...they look familiar somehow...

The sky turns dark, lit up only by the neon lights of the buildings around them, as beneath them a river appears under the bridge, and the lights dance across the water.  And Yuzu remembers all at once where she’s seen this place, as Kurosaki swears. Heartland — the city field where Kurosaki and Sora fought. Yet...why does it feel even  _ more _ familiar?  As though she’s stood on this bridge before, and seen the tall, heart-topped skyscraper in the distance.  Her heart aches with a feeling she can only recognize as nostalgia.

“Why this one?” Yuzu asks.

Reiji pushes his glasses up on his nose, and draws his hand.

“To impress upon you, and everyone present, the need for my decisions.”

His gaze flicker to Kurosaki, as he and the others had drawn back at the field, and Kurosaki’s lips curl back in a snarl.  Yuzu’s heart leaps with concern, though she can’t understand why.

“Heartland was Academia’s first target,” Reiji says.  “They were also unprepared.”

He glanced down at his cards briefly, and selected one from the middle.

“I use the effect of my DD Swirlal Slime in my hand to fuse with another DD monster in my hand.”

He produces the two cards, sliding them into the graveyard.  Yuzu steps back as the air swirls and pinches behind him. He clasps his hands briefly together, and the portal bulges, the creature bursting from inside.  The armored knight lifts its massive shield as it settles behind Reiji.

“I fusion summon DDD Flame King Genghis,” he says.  “I then normal summon the tuner monster DD Night Howling.”

Yuzu tenses as the next monster appears — she knows what comes next.  He won’t stop until he’s summon one of each summoning type — and on the first turn!  It’s almost the same opening as when she dueled him at You Show.

“Night Howling can special summon a DD monster from my Graveyard.  I special summon the DD Baphomet used for the fusion summon, and then Synchro summon.”

The air seems to turn cool and crystalline this time, as the Synchro gates appear and the monsters fly through it.  A second king appears, this one clad in white armor. Yuzu inhales, trying to get herself back in the game. She wipes the tears from her eyes while Reiji continues his turn, looking down at her own cards.  What can she do once Reiji has all three of his strong monsters on the field? Not to mention, she’s sure his Pendulums won’t be far behind. She needs to strategize.

She hears Dennis swear in English as Reiji goes from his Synchro into an XYZ, bringing forth his third king.  Even Gongenzaka is watching with shock at Reiji’s summoning.

Reiji fixes his glasses impassively as all three of his kings settle behind him, all of them radiating a mixture of heat and pressure that presses down on Yuzu’s chest.

“I set a card and end my turn,” he says.  “Now, Hiragi-san. Show me how you will counter me.”

Yuzu grits her teeth.  Does he think this is just some  _ game _ ?  After what happened to everyone?  After what happened to  _ Yuya _ ?  She bites back a rush of tears at that thought.  She can’t stop now — if Reiji wants a fight with her, then he’ll get it.

“My turn!” she calls.  “I set the Pendulum Scales with Scale 2 Coro, the Melodious Minstrel, and Scale 10 Hildegard, the Melodious Songsmith!  I can now special summon monsters between levels three and nine!”

She leaps throws her hand into the air, her pendulum swinging at her chest as the sky turns to sparkling stars, and the glowing pillars rise up with their silhouetted monsters within.

“Come forth, my monsters!  I summon Sonata, the Melodious Diva, and Mozarta, the Melodious Maestra!  And my star, Bloom Bard, the Melodious Knight!”

She relaxes as her monsters descend to the field before her, the scent of roses and flowers filling the air.  Mozarta and Sonata harmonize, while Bloom Bard stands at-ease, one hand resting lighting on the pommel of her blade as she stands before Yuzu.  She’s more than strong enough to destroy at least two of Reiji’s monsters. And the other...she has plans for the other.

Reiji’s lips purse, nodding.

“Pendulum,” he says, softly, yet enough for his voice to carry.  “It was the style begun by Sakaki Yuya.”

“You don’t need to tell me what I know,” Yuzu snaps.

Reiji only blinks.

“It’s very curious,” he says.  “That he was the one to first implement it, and yet...you seem to be the one perfecting it.  Why do you think that is?”

Yuzu bites back a yell, squeezing her eyes shut.  She forces herself to breathe. Reiji probably is looking down at her because of her emotions — and if she lets them get the better of her, she’ll only play into his belief that he shouldn’t have told them the truth.  But she  _ hates _ hearing him talk about Yuya.

“Don’t talk about him,” she says.  “I activate the effect of Coro, the Melodious Minstrel!  Once per turn, I can fusion summon with Melodious monsters on my field!  I’m fusing Sonata and Mozarta!”

Mozarta and Sonata take each other’s hands, and soar up into the sky.  The air once again warps and pinches as the two turn to light and swirl together.  Yuzu brings her hands together, drawing them down before her.

“Angel’s song! Supreme genius! With the guidance of the baton, gather your power!  Fusion Summon — come here to the stage and sing the song of victory! Bloom Diva the Melodious Choir!”

Bloom Diva trills as she descends to the ground, floating down within her cupped flower.  Bloom Bard seems to turn towards her and smile, as though greeting her arrival.

Reiji once again presses his lips together and nods.

“You have come quite far,” he says.  “You have evolved Pendulum.”

“I don’t want your compliments.”

“And why not?” Reiji asks, pushing up his glasses.  “Aren’t you trying to prove to me that I should have confided the truth in you?  Shouldn’t your strength be that proof?”

Yuzu tenses.  Her breaths come short, and she feels sick.

“That’s not what this is about.”

“Then tell me, Hiragi Yuzu.  What  _ is  _ this about?  Do you mean to take revenge on me for what you have lost?”

“That’s not it either!”

Reiji watches her with that horrible, unflinching gaze, and Yuzu wants to fling herself across the field and punch him.  He’s the one who challenged her! And yet...she feels a twist in her stomach as fresh tears rise to her eyes. She would have challenged him.  She can feel it in her shaking hands — she wants to fight him. She wants to...she wants to at least  _ see  _ something in him change!  What does she want? Remorse?  An apology? None of that will bring Yuya back.

Oh.

None of that will bring Yuya back.

Yuzu fights the urge to drop her face into her hands.  A tear escapes her eye and she grits her teeth.

“I activate Bloom Bard’s effect!” she shouts.  “I can remove any number of Melodious monsters from my Graveyard from play, and this turn, she can attack that many times!  I have two Melodious monsters — Bloom Bard can attack twice this turn!”

Bloom Bard draws her sword, and light shines down the edges, glowing in the grooves of musical notation engraved on the steel.  The roses in her hair burst into full bloom.

“Bloom Bard!  Attack Caesar and Genghis!”

Bloom Bard wields her sword in a glowing arc.  An eerie, echoing tune pours from her lips as she surges forward.  The two kings both raise their weapons, but in their armor, they are too slow.  Bloom Bard cuts through them like butter, and both explode in a rain of stars and debris.  The aftermath of the attack rains down over the arena, and Yuzu flinches as the ground shakes from the explosions.  Fire bursts out of a nearby building from the crash of a fallen weapon. Yuzu’s mouth goes dry. A shake begins to run through her and she feels as though her brain is about to short out, panic rushing through her.  She shakes it off enough to shout another attack.

“Bloom Diva!  Attack DDD Gust High King Alexander!”

Bloom Diva inhales, and then releases a shockwave of music from her lips.  Alexander lifts its shield, but it won’t be enough. That’s another two thousand damage on Reiji!  She’s winning!

“I activate my face down card,  DDD Contract Change.”

Reiji taps the button on his Disk, and the card reveals itself on the field.

“When I would take battle damage, I can banish the DDD monster in my graveyard with the highest attack, and negate the damage.  I can then add one DD Pendulum monster from my deck to my hand.”

_ Pendulums _ .  Yuzu shivers in spite of herself.

“Bloom Diva’s effect will still complete!  Your monster is destroyed!”

Alexander’s armor cracks under the roar of sound, and the monster explodes.  Once again, the rain of broken armor falls across the field, hitting the ground and sending flames up to the dark sky.  Why is Yuzu trembling so badly? It’s only Solid Vision!

For a moment, her brain conjures up an image of some strange, robotic creature looming over the buildings, glowing red eye cutting lasers into the ground.  She gasps, taking a step back. But it’s only her imagination? What was that? Why did she think of that?

Reiji’s eyes narrow, but he does not comment on her reaction.  Why is her heart hammering so badly in her chest?

“My turn,” Reiji says.  “I set the Pendulum scales with DD Savant Galilei and DD Savent Kepler.”

Yuzu’s heart clenches as his own pillars rise up on either side of him.

“From my hand, I special summon DDD Oblivion King Abyss Ragnarok.”

The creature bursts from the ground with the earth shaking before it, and Yuzu squeaks in spite of herself.  She almost stumbles, and Bloom Bard grabs her by the elbow, righting her. 

“When Abyss Ragnarok is summoned, I can special summon a DD monster from my graveyard.  I will return DDD Wave King Caesar to the field. I will then normal summon DD Necro Slime — and I will tribute it by Abyss Ragnarok’s effect to banish one of your monsters.”

Yuzu’s heart leaps into her throat.  Reiji’s finger lifts, and then swings to Bloom Diva.

“I will banish Bloom Diva by this effect.”

_ No! _ But Yuzu has no means of protecting her monster, as Abyss Ragnarok lifts its sword without standing from its throne, and rips a hole through the air.  Bloom Diva shrieks as she is dragged inside, and disappears.

“DD Necro Slime’s effect then activates.  I can banish it to fusion summon with monsters on my side of the field — I fuse my two monsters to summon DDD Wave Oblivion King Caesar Ragnarok.”

The new king arises onto the field, and the smoke from the fires is getting thick now, enough that Yuzu has to cover her mouth with her hand.

“Caesar was sent to the graveyard, so I can add a Dark Contract card from my deck to my hand,” Reiji says, producing the card from his deck and showing it to her before placing it in his hand.  “Caesar Ragnarok — attack Bloom Bard.”

It’s the lack of emotion in his voice that gets to her more than anything.  It makes her want to scream, as though to compensate for his own lack.

Bloom Bard raises her sword, but she’s nowhere near strong enough to take the massive armored king that bears down on her.  Bloom Bard throws herself between Yuzu and Caesar Ragnarok, her sword briefly catching against the other’s before it shatters, and the sword cuts through her.  Yuzu feels like screaming.

“Now then, Hiragi-san,” Reiji says, setting a card.  “Will you show me how you plan to handle my attack?”

Yuzu fights back more tears.  She can’t give up...she can’t give up!  If she loses, then...no, she can’t think about that.  She has to keep fighting — if not for her, then for the people that Reiji sacrificed!

“My turn!  Draw!”

She stares at her cards.  What can she do with this?  What can...

Something stirs in her chest.  As the fires rage through the beautiful, glowing city, she feels tears that have nothing to do with her.  A shake in her hands that comes from somewhere else. Her eyes draw to a card she’s never used before.

As though in a dream, she moves without thinking.

“I activate the spell card Tempo Change!” she calls.  “I can destroy my scales, and add two new Pendulum cards from my deck to my hand!”

Her pillars shatter, and then reforge as she plays her two new cards.

“I reset my scales with the scale three Strozzi, the Melodious Songsmith, and scale nine Piano, the Melodious Minstrel!”

Her monsters rise up into the pillars as Yuzu’s heart starts to pick up.  She feels like her voice is vibrating somehow, as though someone else is trying to speak at the same time as her through the same throat.

“I can now special summon Bloom Bard back to my field!  Return to me!”

Bloom Bard bursts into the field in another explosion of the scent of flowers, drawing her blade immediately this time.

“I’ll then normal summon Leitmotif, the Melodious Diva from my hand!” she shouts.  “When Leitmotif is summoned, I can special summon two more of the same monster from my deck or hand!”

The first small, shaggy haired singer appears, and then two identical ones appear beside it.  She notices the twitch in Reiji’s eye, the first real emotion she’s seen out of him during this entire duel.  He’s noticed — they’re all level one. Yuzu stretches her hand forward, feeling a rush of blood through her head and ears.

“I overlay my three Leitmotifs!” she shouts. 

As the portal opens and the world darkens in the wake of the expanse of stars, her three monsters surging inside, Yuzu feels somehow as though she’s done this before — done this recently, even.  But...why can’t she remember?

“Raise your voices in the lyrics of the choir and gather on the battlefield to take brilliant flight!  XYZ Summon! Dance in the sky! Rank 1 — Lyrical Luscinia, Assembled Nightingale!”

Ruri’s monster descends onto the field in a roar of music and feathers.  Yuzu’s head pounds, so loudly that she only barely hears Kurosaki’s loud swear.  When...when did she get this card? She can only barely remember...something about Ruri, falling down the stairs, and Yuzu running to her...something about a light encasing them, and Ruri’s tears as she pressed the card into her hand...

_ “Please bring back all of their smiles.” _

Yuzu’s eyes fill with tears, and this time, she feels as though she finally understands why.  This war — they never asked for it. They weren’t ready. This was supposed to be a tournament — a place where they could have fun with dueling, to entertain the crowd.  And it had been turned into a bloodbath. Everyone’s smiles are gone. If Reiji had only told the truth...

“How interesting,” Reiji says, his voice low and curious.  “I had no idea you were capable of XYZ summoning, Hiragi-san.”

He glances up at her two monsters as Yuzu’s heart roars in her chest, her head pounds.

“Though, it won’t quite be enough to win,” he says.

Yuzu wipes the tears from her eyes.  

“I activate the effect of my Pendulum monsters,” she says.  “Piano can target one XYZ monster on the field and give it a level equal to its rank!”

Piano giggles as it strokes the keys of its portable keyboard, the sound faint but still trickling down from above.  Assembled Nightingale raises her wings and ruffles them with a cry as her rank changes into a level.

“Then, Strozzi can change the level of one monster on the field to the same as one of my Melodious monsters!  I raise Assembled Nightingale’s level to eight!”

Strozzi clasps her hands together and sings prettily, wrapping them about in song.

“And now I will overlay Bloom Bard and Assembled Nightingale!”

She clasps her hands together, and for a moment, feels as though she’s holding someone else’s hand other than her own.

“Knight of song and collector of lyrics, join your melodies together now into an overwhelming dirge,” she chants.  “XYZ summon! Sing, Rank 8, Bloom Nightingale the Knight of Requiem!”

The air turns bitterly cold, and her hair stands on end along her arms.  She knows she’s seen this creature before, but she can only barely remember it.  It’s like it came out of dream — or a nightmare. Bloom Nightingale is cold and distant, holding her bone-white violin at her side in thin, bony fingers.  Yuzu’s head spins. She tastes metal in her mouth. She can’t stop now.

“Bloom Nightingale’s effect activates!  She gains six hundred attack for every XYZ unit on the XYZ monster used to summon her.  That’s another eighteen hundred, bringing her up to forty-three hundred!”

Bloom Nightingale drags her bow across the strings of her violin, and the feathers of her cloak stand on end and shimmer.

“By detaching one XYZ unit from her, she can attack twice this turn as well!  Bloom Nightingale — attack Reiji’s monster, and then finish this!”

Bloom Nightingale drags out another long, eerie shrieking song on her violin.  The sound wave pummels across the field, shattering windows in buildings, causing the bridge to crack under her feet.  Reiji throws up one arm against the wind.

“I activate my face-down card,” Reiji calls.  “Dark Contract with the Witch. I can send one DD card from my hand to destroy one monster on the field.”

The buzz in Yuzu’s head immediately snaps, and she feels empty and shaken.  Reiji’s face down card glows. The rush of energy from the song breaks into pieces, and Bloom Nightingale’s violin strings snap as she explodes into a rain of sparks.  She cries out as the force of it sends her sailing back, crashing down into the stairs behind her and causing her to roll all the way to the ground. Her body screams with aching pains.  No!! She....she’s out of...

She pushes herself up to her hands and knees, and Reiji appears at the top of the stairs.  She shoves herself to her feet, swaying, not willing to be on her knees.

“You fight with passion, Hiragi-san,” he says.  “But know this — that passion will not serve you on the battlefield.”

“We’re not soldiers!” she screams at him.

His eyes briefly lower.  Then they raise to hers again.  The fires of the burning city around them glitter in his dark eyes.

“Unfortunately,” he says, “like this city, we no longer have the luxury of that choice.”

He raises his hand up.

“Caesar Ragnarok,” he says.  “Attack directly.”

The blow rattles through her, and she doesn’t even have the strength to throw her hands up against it.  She hears the buzz of the Action Field disappearing around her, and her heart plummets into her stomach.

Yuzu’s legs can’t hold her.  Her eyes blur. As the burning city disappears from sight, she finds herself collapsing — Bloom Bard can’t catch her this time as she drops to her knees, scraping against the ground.

She watches her tears fall onto the backs of her hands without really feeling them.  Her shoulders tremble.

What did she gain from that?  She gained nothing...nothing at all.  She couldn’t even make Reiji understand the pain he’d put them through.  And Yuya...everyone...

She hears Reiji shift, but she can’t look up.

“To those of you who are willing to fight,” he says.  “Meet me at LDS tomorrow morning.”

She hears his shoes scuff against the ground as he turns.  Somehow, she’s surprised when she hears them coming towards her.  She looks up, determined not to look more useless than she already does.

Even now, Reiji is as impassive as ever.  She presses her lips together, and tries to wish away her tears.

“Sakaki Yuya is alive, Hiragi-san.”

It’s the very last thing she ever expects to hear out of him.  Her chest seizes up, her throat closes, and she nearly chokes. She surges up to her feet, grabbing at his scarf.

“What?” she gasps, her voice cracking.  “You — why didn’t you —”

With a surprising gentleness, Reiji pushes her hands from him.

“Perhaps next time if you’d like to know something of me, Hiragi-san, you’ll try listening before accusing.”

He turns, as Yuzu’s hands shake in the air where they once held his scarf.  She wants to scream at him — why hadn’t he told her this before? Why hadn’t he said something?  Why had he let her believe for even a moment — if he’s alive, where is he? He can’t just leave without saying anything else!  What...what happened to...

But she sways.  All at once, the feeling in her legs disappears, and as though something’s sucked the energy out of her and left her hollow, she can no longer stand.  She falls, backwards, right into Gongenzaka’s arms as he swoops forward to catch her.

Yuzu can only watch, shaking, as Reiji’s back disappears from her.

Yuya is alive.

She closes her eyes, and finally, finally, lets herself cry.

* * *

Yuya gasps, his ears popping as though he’s just shot straight up into the air in an airplane.  The popping isn’t the worst, though, as the tingle recedes from his skin and the chill from before is replaced with a wash of what feels like arid heat in comparison, immediately making him choke on his own air. 

Rin swears, and the bike beneath them wobbles.  It’s all he can do to cling to the little slips of paper that he’d managed to scoop off the ground as the Rin hits the brakes and the whole bike skids around in a circle until they’re facing the opposite direction.

His pulse roars in his ears, and all he can hear for a moment is Rin’s haggard breathing over his head, before she yanks her helmet off, throws it to the ground, and yells out a swear.  He can’t hold onto his awkward position on the bike anymore. He slides off, thankfully feet first instead of head first, and sinks to his knees on a warm, concrete ground. Hang on — what’s with the heat?  Are they in the jungle field? But no, the concrete...

Rin swears again, and still dizzy, Yuya blinks up towards a warm orange sky, squinting at the city skyline around them.  Skyline? Is the tournament over? Did the generators turn off? But...wait. He doesn’t recognize these buildings.

His head snaps around in both directions, eyes widening.  Where’s — where’s LDS? And what’s with this view, with all of those buildings somehow  _ beneath _ them as well as around them, like they’re on some double-layered city?

Rin smacks at the dashboard of her bike, letting out a frustrated cry as she yanks a card out of her deck and glares at it like it did something.

“Now??” she yells at the slip of paper.  “You chose  _ now _ to bring us back??”

Yuya shakes off the dizziness, sending it from his head into his body as it begins to tremble.

“What...where are we?” he gasps.

Rin lifts her glare from the card to Yuya, and her gaze changes from angry to grim.

“Home sweet home,” she says, with a harsh note of bitterness.  “Welcome to the City, Sakaki Yuya.”

* * *

_ He hears the roar of the crowd outside and something in him tenses.  His fingers twitch, but he doesn’t let them roll into fists. Not yet.  Don’t let them see you break. _

_ A hand, light, but shaking, brushes against his shoulder.  He doesn’t look. _

_ “Don’t go out there.” _

_ The hand tightens on his shoulder.  Gently, he slides one of his hands up on top of hers.  He can feel her warmth even through his gloves. _

_ “It’s going to be okay.” _

_ “No, it’s not. Listen to them — they want blood out there.” _

_ He tightens his grip on her hand, threading his fingers between hers. _

_ “And it’s my fault.” _

_ “No, it isn’t.” _

_ “Yes, it is.” _

_ He looks now, and her eyes are haunted, the bags underneath them evidence of her all nighters, her slumped shoulders evidence of the lack of results from them.  He smiles. It’s easy to smile, when it’s for her. He brushes back her bangs from her forehead, and she pushes him away, lips tightening. _

_ “It isn’t your fault.  You don’t have to fix this.” _

_ He keeps smiling.  In his chest, he feels the hum of nerves, not his, but his partners’.  They are uncertain of his plans. They worry for him. They always worry for him and there’s little he can do about that. But he can’t let her worry for him, too.  So he smiles. _

_ “I started this mess,” he says, cupping his hands around hers.  “Don’t worry. I’m going to go out there and remind everyone what real dueling is, the way you reminded me.  Don’t worry.” _

_ No matter how many times he says ‘don’t worry’, it never leaves her eyes.  She clings to him. _

_ “Don’t go out there,” she begs again. _

_ He smiles again.  He squeezes her hands.  Then he lets go, and steps out of her reach, out into the blinding lights of the curtains raising. _

_ And she stays behind, in the darkness, the screams of the bloodthirsty crowd clattering against the empty hollow in her chest, and wonders what the point of it all is _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All right there we are...an extra long chapter for the "season finale"! At this point, I am going to be taking a break, of maybe 2-3 weeks before I begin posting again, so that I have some time to work on the outline for the next arc, to hopefully get a bit of a backlog, and also just to take a break from this fic, because lemme be honest, this is a tough one what with all of the duels and all;;;; 
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading this far, and I hope you'll continue to enjoy once we pick back up again! Thank you!


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